Discovering the Truth
by Mrs.InsaneOne
Summary: After Discovering their Future, through the help of a battered old book, Lily and James would give anything to change what fate has in store for their unborn son. Part 2 in Series. JP/LE, RL/OC, SB/OC. COMPLETE
1. Desperation

**AN:** _This story is a continuation of Discovering the Future; if you have not already read 'Future', I'd advise you to go do so before beginning this story as otherwise this story will not make a whole lot of sense otherwise. _

_As with the posting of 'Future' on this site, I have edited and revised a good portion of this entire story – in order to fix many of my rampant mistakes that I made the first time I wrote it. I have also been adding in a few new scenes and rewording others as well as adding a more in-depth summary at the beginning. _

_I hope you enjoy reading this story (as much as you enjoyed it the first time for those of you who have read one or both of the original versions on other sites). Thank you, and enjoy the story! – Jenn_

**DISCLAIMER:** _ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

**SUMMARY:** _After Discovering the Future, through the help of a battered old book titled 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone', Lily Evans and James Potter would give anything to change what fate has in store for their unborn son. However, when tragedy strikes and the future is rewritten, will they like the new future any better than the original one? Can getting your wish really be the best thing in the world? _

_Find out as our six friends set about 'Discovering the Truth'. _

_A MWPP era fic by Mrs. Insane One..._

* * *

_**Discovering the Truth  
Revised Alternate Version for Re-posting**_

_**Chapter 1: Desperation**_

Lori and Jenn slowly sank into chairs as they glanced around the room and noticed the burn marks from where the sparks had showered onto the floor. Sirius and Remus shared a look of disbelief before they both moved to look over James's shoulder and read the new title of the book. Shaking a bit as he realized the seriousness of what had happened, Remus sat back on his heels and shuddered. Sirius brought a hand up and rubbed at the back of his neck as he frowned down at the new book. No one spoke as they all sat fearfully watching Lily as James worked the book from between her clenched hands.

James read the cover once more and then tossed the book aside as he took Lily's hands into his and turned them over. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and began to wipe the blood from her hands, making a gallant effort to be gentle. Lily closed her eyes against the pain as her palms stung with each and every touch of the material. When he was done, James gasped at what he saw; the skin of Lily's hands was torn and shredded where she had held the book.

"Morgana's knickers!" he exclaimed softly as he dropped the blood soaked handkerchief.

"By Merlin's broken staff!" Sirius exclaimed as he watched the blood from Lily's hands soak into the cover of the book as it sat on the floor.

Lori jumped up from where she had sat down and quickly moved in to look at Lily's hands. She frowned and pulled out her wand, whispering softly she gently tapped each hand with her wand in turn and then watched as the skin slowly healed itself.

"You can heal?" James asked in astonishment.

"Yes, I've even helped Madam Pomfrey a time or two so I could learn more," Lori replied as she focused on her task.

"Thanks Lori, they don't hurt so much now," Lily murmured as she slumped back in the chair and dried the tears from her face. "What exactly happened? I remember picking up the book and feeling the air go cold. Then I could hear screaming… it sounded like you, James… and then I could hear – _his_ – laughter in the background."

"We heard nothing but the roaring wind. There was a green light that surrounded you and cut you off from the rest of us," James answered as he took Lily's hands in his own once more.

"Oh."

Jenn moved forward and picked up the book, turning it over in her hands she read aloud from the back cover. "Harry Potter was a legend in his world. He could do nothing wrong. Witches and Wizards everywhere flocked to his house in the forest, where he had been raised by a kindly witch and wizard after his parents had been murdered, just to shake his hand and get a picture of the famous child. Spoiled by all, Harry thought he was the greatest wizard of all times until he received his invitation to Hogwarts. Instantly shunned by the other children Harry grows resentful and draws into himself. Alone and angry Harry stumbles on an ancient evil far below the castle and finds himself struggling for his very life. The choices he makes could very well destroy the world." Jenn looked up and found everyone staring at her and the book.

"I think this sounds worse then the last book," Sirius announced from where he sat.

"What have we done?" Lily groaned as she buried her face in her hands.

"It might not be all that bad, sure it sounds that way from the cover, but well… maybe it will be better this way," Jenn suggested. "We could always read it to find out."

"Burn it! I don't want to know anymore," Lily raged. "_Just burn it!_"

James and Jenn exchanged a brief look and then Jenn stood up and walked over to the fireplace and threw the book inside. Lily watched as the flames began to lick the cover of the book and green smoke curled up the flue. Sparks flared and the book began to glow blood red as the flames grew larger.

Suddenly a great snowy owl appeared among the flames and clutched the book in its claws. Flapping its great wings it burst forth from out of the fire and soared around the room screeching furiously. It dived and swooped over each of the kids' heads and finally landed on the arm of the chair Lily sat in, small wisps of smoke rising from its wings. Glaring at her the owl leaned forward and snapped at Lily's hands until she reached out to take the book from it. Screeching once more the owl jumped back into the air and flew back into the fireplace, only to disappear into the flames as suddenly as it had appeared.

Lily sat staring at the untouched cover of the new book in horror. There wasn't a single scorch mark on it even though she had seen it catch fire the moment it touched the embers.

"I guess we are not going to be able to get rid of it that way," Lori said slowly.

"I wonder where the owl came from," Jenn mused aloud as she stared into the flames.

James ignored her as he watched Lily's face. "We have to read it Lily. Someone or _something_ wants us to know what the future holds. The future has been changed once already by us reading, maybe we can change it again, make it better." Lily looked into his face hopefully at this, gently taking her hand in his he spoke again. "This is hard I know, but how can we forget everything that has already happened because of the first book?"

Closing her eyes, Lily nodded slowly as she handed the book back to Jenn.

"Chapter One, The Boy Who Had Everything," Jenn read softly from the book as the others fidgeted around trying to get comfortable.

"Deep in the forest, far away from any of the nearby villages, there stood a simple whitewashed cottage. Though clean the small cabin looked as if it had suffered from neglect for several years. The paint was faded and peeling, several shutters hung at odd angles, several shingle tiles from the roof lay scattered around the sagging front porch and a small struggling garden could be seen behind the rotting boards of an old wooden fence. 

Yet, despite the disrepair, an air of restrained excitement hung in the woods surrounding the cottage. 

Suddenly a small deer burst through the surrounding trees in a state of panic. Right behind the deer was a small boy flying on a brand new racing broom. Eyes wide in excitement Harry Potter swooped down and swerved in front of the deer, causing it to leap the rotted fence and trample the struggling plants in its effort to escape the boy who tormented it.

Harry Potter turned the broom and raced up through the tree tops until he burst into the early morning sun light. Laughing aloud as he stopped to take a deep breath of the crisp air. Turning his new broom around he dropped into a dive and sped like a bullet down towards the deer as it tried once more to escape into the trees. 

"Harry. _**Harry James Potter**_!" a voice rang out from the cottage. 

"Coming!" Harry cried in reply as he turned from the deer and brought the broom to a jarring halt.

"Where have you been boy?" A woman's voice demanded as he pounded up the cottage stairs with the broom in hand."

"I was testing out my new broom Auntie Lupin," Harry replied as he brushed back a lock of unruly black hair out of his eyes."

"I'm married?" Remus asked with a dumbfounded look of surprise on his face. He turned to look at Lori and then blushed furiously as she just smiled back at him.

"Unless he calls _you_ Auntie, Remus," Sirius said very seriously. Remus threw a pillow at Sirius while he glared at James who had laughed at the teasing remark.

"Well, so far it doesn't sound too bad. Of course, he seems to enjoy teasing animals, but most kids do that right?" Lori asked tentatively.

"I'm not sure, we haven't read much," James replied slowly as he sat frowning.

"Well, I think we should keep interruptions to a minimum." Jenn announced, "We didn't really get to read much of the last book, and well, we might never know what was supposed to happen. If we can finish this one, we might have a better idea about what is to be."

The others grudgingly agreed and Jenn turned back to the book to read on.

"Yes, well the sun isn't even all the way up yet - and you didn't leave a note or anything." 

"I'm sorry," Harry blurted out, not looking sorry at all. "I got excited when Uncle Remus handed me a Nimbus two-thousand when he woke me up this morning!"

"Yes, I am sure all thoughts of everything else just flew right out of your head."

Harry grinned and nodded at this and went thumping past Mrs. Lupin and tossed his new broom carelessly into the corner with his old Cleansweep seven. Charging into the kitchen he sat down and grabbed a huge handful of bacon and began stuffing his face as Mrs. Lupin walked in behind him smiling softly.

"Are all of those mine?" Harry asked through a bite of bacon as he pointed with another piece of bacon to a huge pile of packages and letters that were piled on a small table in the corner of the kitchen.

"Yes, dear, they're all yours. Your admirer's have been sending them not stop since late last night. Everyone knows it's your birthday today," Mrs. Lupin replied absently as she fried up more bacon and set it on the plate in front of Harry.

"What a spoiled little brat he had become. What have you been telling him Remus?" James asked in amazement as he looked over at Remus. "You are never that nice to us!"

"I don't know. Maybe I felt sorry for him after you died and I have been trying to make it up to him by being extravagant," Remus replied with a confused shrug. Waving his arm he motioned Jenn to continue with the story.

"When can I open them Auntie?" Harry demanded through a mouthful of bacon.

"When your uncle gets in." she replied. 

Harry quickly stuffed several more pieces of bacon into his mouth as he eyed the large pile of stuff in the corner. As he sat chewing a rusty brown owl swooped in and landed on the table next to him. He was reaching out for the letter it held in its beak when Mrs. Lupin bustled over and shooed the bird from the table. 

"Over with the others. He has to wait to open his cards," She said wearily. 

The owl refused to budge as it stared reproachfully at Mrs. Lupin and ruffled its feathers indignantly.

Frowning Mrs. Lupin took the letter from the owl and turned it over to see who it was from. When she saw the purple wax seal bearing the Hogwarts coat of arms, she smiled and thanked the bird. Hooting softly it flew back out the window without waiting for permission.

"Here Harry, this one you may open," Mrs. Lupin said as she handed the letter to Harry.

"Who's it from?" Harry asked as he grabbed the letter and ripped it open.

Pulling out a thick parchment Harry read:

HOGWARTS SCHOOL _of_ WITCHCRAFT _and _WIZARDRY  
Headmistress: Minerva McGonagall

Dear Mr. Potter, 

We have written to inform you that you have been  
chosen to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.  
Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books  
and supplies.

Term begins on September 1st; we await your owl by  
no later than July 31st.

Yours sincerely, 

Severus Snape_  
Deputy Headmaster_

"What!" James exclaimed as he jumped and grabbed the book from Jenn's hands. "How in the world did that _prat_ get to be Deputy Headmaster! And why is McGonagall Headmistress? Where is Dumbledore!"

Sirius just stared blankly at the book a weird expression on his face as he listened to James's fuming. The others kept exchanging worried and uncertain glances as they tried to figure out what might have happened to one of the most powerful wizards currently living.

"He would never leave Hogwarts would he?" Remus asked softly.

"I don't think he would, at least not willingly," Jenn replied.

"Dumbledore hasn't been looking all that well lately," Lily added in a small voice as she tore her eyes away from the book in James's hands. "You… you don't suppose his heart could give out do you? Or that he'd… he could die from some magical illness?"

Silence met this query. The mere thought of Dumbledore passing into the afterlife was a terrible thought indeed. If anything happened to Dumbledore, Hogwarts would be as good as lost. There would be none to stop Voldemort from taking over the castle and turning it into a school for the dark arts or worse. The knowledge in the library alone could be disastrous in the dark lord's hands, not to mention the magical artifacts spread throughout the halls of the school.

After several dragging minutes of silence Jenn reopened the book. "Shall I read more?" she asked tentatively. When she got no objections Jenn continued with the story.

"I GOT MY HOGWARTS LETTER!" Harry cried out in wild abandonment as he jumped up from the table and began dancing around the room. "Auntie. Auntie I got my letter for HOGWARTS!"

Mrs. Lupin laughed and joined Harry in dancing around the table unable to ignore the pure joy on Harry's face at receiving his Hogwarts letter.

"What's all the excitement?" Mr. Lupin asked as he stepped into the house and knocked mud from his shoes. 

"I GOT MY LETTER UNCLE REMUS!" Harry hollered as he rushed over and grabbed his uncle around the waste and waving the Hogwarts letter in his face. "I'm going to Hogwarts! Just like my mum and dad!"

Remus Lupin laughed as his adoptive nephew continued to dance excitedly around the kitchen. 

Walking over to his wife he wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed her softly on the cheek. "Has he been this loud all morning Monica dear?"

"Monica?" Lori gasped slightly as she gave Remus a hurt look.

Remus was totally confused; he had never really cared for Monica, it made no sense to him that he would marry her sometime in the future. He had no response or explanation for Lori as she turned from him. In his distracted state he never even considered trying to comfort her.

Jenn continued to read from the book after a few minutes, the small frown on her face and sadness in her voice the only indication that she was bothered by the latest revelation.

"Most of the morning it was silent as a tomb in here. Of course, it would have been a complete madhouse if _some_one hadn't given Harry an early present at the break of dawn this morning," Monica replied as she smiled up at her husband.

Blushing Remus grinned as Harry continued to dance excitedly.

"I couldn't help it dear; he'd been drooling over that broom since it was first placed in the window of the Quidditch supply shop," Remus replied sheepishly.

"Yes, I recall every 'can I have it know' each time we passed the display. I thought we had agreed to wait though?" Monica sighed in exasperation.

"Yes, well, I wanted to get him something special for going to Hogwar -"

"Uncle Remus, can I please open my presents now?" Harry interrupted. 

"It's impolite to interrupt when someone is speaking, Harry, dear," Monica chided. 

"Sorry Auntie. Please uncle Remus? May I _please?_" Harry begged. "Auntie said I could as soon as you got back."

"Go ahead champ," Remus said with a smile."

Jenn continued to read about Harry opening cards and letters that had wizard money in side, all wishing him a happy birthday. About Harry unwrapping gift after gift, each one more extravagant then the last. From gold cauldrons to silver telescopes, from racing brooms to fancy quills and two or three of everything in between. As the list of gifts grew longer, Jenn read of the thank you list Monica started writing for Harry, or Lupin gathering up the discarded wrapping paper and empty boxes and of the steady stream of package laden owls that continued to bring more gifts for Harry. In no time at all she was reading the last few paragraphs of the chapter.

"It was long past midnight by the time the last owl dropped its burden and fluttered out into the starlit sky. Harry still had a large pile of gifts yet to open, and he had not had much time to enjoy any of the gifts as he had opened one after another. 

Monica wearily wrote the last sender's name on the thank you list and then began rolling up the six foot parchment so that it would not get lost. 

"Harry dear, why don't you leave the rest for tomorrow," She murmured softly as she stood up and set the list inside a kitchen drawer and turned to watch Harry. 

"Aww Auntie, can't I finish tonight?" Harry whined as he pulled the paper off yet another racing broom.

"Come on, bed time birthday boy," Monica repeated as she shooed him towards bed. Harry grudgingly stood up and dragged his feet upstairs. 

"What are we going to do with all this stuff Remus?" Monica asked forlornly as she gazed at the piles of books, cauldrons, brooms, weights, telescopes, candy, and money spread out all over the kitchen.

"The same thing we do every year for the boy who has everything," Lupin replied just as wearily as he shoved a stack of chocolate frogs off a chair and sat down. "We let him choose which ones he would like to keep and we sell or donate the rest."

"That's the end of the chapter," Jenn announced to the others.

* * *

**AN:** _Finally managed to get around to posting the first chapter of this story, hope it has lived up to everyone's expectations! Chapter 2 will be added as soon as I'm happy with the edits I've been making to it, which might take at least a week because I've just been commissioned to start a new project for a client and will be working on her new website for her. I'll do my best to get it up as soon as I can though. Thanks for reading everyone! - Jenn_


	2. Verbal Explosions

**DISCLAIMER:** _ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 2: Verbal Explosions**

Remus and James jumped guiltily as they had stopped paying very close attention to the story as Jenn read the chapter aloud. Sirius was frowning slightly as he had been hanging on to every word throughout the entire chapter.

"So far, it seems he is much better off then the last one. I wonder what could possibly be so bad about Moony here watching over him. He sounds a little spoiled, but he is much happier in this future than he was in the last," Sirius contemplated out loud.

No one answered him as everyone was a bit upset about how things were supposed to be turning out now. Lily and James still died, Lori now knew her friend would marry the man she was starting to love, and Sirius and Jenn were still not mentioned in the new future.

"Well, shall we keep reading or do we take a break for the night?" Jenn asked as she looked up from the book.

"Why don't we read the second chapter?" Sirius asked as he looked from James to Lily and back to Jenn. "I want to see what happens next."

When no one else objected Jenn passed the book to Sirius. "Here, you read for a while. My throat is dry from talking so much."

Sirius curled up in a chair and opened the book to chapter two. Clearing his throat he glanced around the room at the others before he began reading.

Chapter Two, Diagon Alley

The next morning Remus woke early and headed downstairs, as he stepped into the kitchen he saw Harry, still in his pajamas unwrapping the last of his presents by candle light.

"Morning, Uncle Remus," Harry called out cheerfully as he caught sight of his uncle standing in the doorway.

Remus shook his head and set about making himself a cup of coffee. 

"So, what else have you unwrapped this morning?" 

"Five sets of Exploding snap, three chess sets, two crystal balls, eight boxes of Bertie Bots every flavor beans, and three more spell books," Harry happily replied. 

"Goodness. Have you been thinking about what you are going to do with all this stuff?"

At this Harry's face fell. Every year, Uncle Remus and Aunt Monica had Harry give away or sell off many of his presents. It wasn't that he needed all of them, he just had a hard time choosing which ones he wanted to keep. 

"No, I haven't yet."

"I see," Remus replied slowly. "I know it is difficult, but we really have no place to keep all of the wonderful things that your admirers send you."

"I know, Uncle Remus, It's just so hard to decide. Everything is so cool." 

"Yes, but look here, you have received nine Nimbus 2000's and that is not counting the one I gave you yesterday morning. You don't really need ten new brooms do you?"

"No, I suppose I don't. But I can keep two, right? In case something happens to one?" Harry asked hopefully. 

"I guess, but you would have to sell your old broom then."

"Oh BOY!" Harry cried as he jumped up and hugged Remus around the neck. "You are the best, Uncle Remus! I promise I will decide quickly on the rest of the stuff."

"Alright, why don't you take the stuff you really want to keep upstairs to your bedroom? We have to go to Diagon Alley today to get your school supplies. Where is your letter?"

"Here," Harry answered as he pulled the crumpled letter from his shirt pocket. 

"Let's see if we have anything on this list already."

"This is horrible!" James cried in outrage. "Harry is a spoiled brat! How could you Moony?"

"What do you mean, how could I?" Remus raged back. "We have no idea what I have had to put up with in the future, what I had to do or say!"

"Couldn't you at least have tried harder not to spoil him?"

"I didn't spoil him! I didn't give him each of those presents! How can you stop the other witches and wizards in the world from thanking him year after year?"

"_I would have sent the gifts back!_" James stormed as he and Remus stood toe to toe arguing.

Sirius closed the book and set it aside as he watched the fight from where he sat. Things were quickly going from bad to worse for the six teens. They weren't even allowed to join their fellow classmates or go outside to blow off some frustration. They were virtually prisoners in a place that had once been their playground.

"_Stop it! Both of you!_" Lily screamed angrily as she pulled out her wand and pointed it at the two boys while glaring at them with her bright green eyes.

James turned to look around at the others and frowned at them staring at him and Remus in astonishment. Sheepishly he sat back down and turned back to Remus when he realized that he was arguing over something that hadn't even happened yet.

"I'm sorry, Moony; I got carried away."

"Apology accepted," Remus said grudgingly as he sat back down and folded his arms defensively.

Seeing the tension in the room rising James racked his brain in desperation, and he seized on an idea of Lily's from the other night. "I think it's about time we had our second set of Animagus lessons," he exclaimed aloud as he jumped to his feet.

"Great idea James!" Jenn seconded as she stopped her pacing.

"Perfect!" Sirius added.

Remus slowly nodded and Lori, seeing him, shook her head no.

"Oh come on, Lori," Jenn persuaded, "Don't cop out on us! We all had so much fun last time!"

"Oh, all right," Lori huffed as she stood and took out her wand.

"Come on Lily! How about it?" James coaxed.

"I guess it's better than sitting here doing nothing," Lily replied listlessly.

"It's unanimous!" Sirius shouted gleefully.

This made the others chuckle softly and shake their heads. Lining up facing the Marauders, the girls readied their wands and started practicing the wand movements. Each of the boys walked up and down the line correcting the mistakes and praised them when they were perfect. After about twenty minutes of practice the boys began teaching the girls how to speak the spell. This they practiced for almost an hour before they boys were satisfied that all three girls were pronouncing it correctly.

"Oy, this is hard work!" Jenn cried as she flopped down on the floor. Sirius laughed at her and sat down next to her and rubbed the shoulder of her wand arm. "Mmm, that feels great, Sirius," She murmured as she closed her eyes and leaned into the massage.

"What now?" James asked aloud as he too sank to the floor.

"Well, I think it's our turn to teach you boys something. I know we aren't finished with the Animagus spell, but I think the variety will help," Lily mused as she looked at the others. "Lori, it's your turn."

Lori looked as if she wanted to refuse, but instead sat down and placed her chin in her hands and tried to think what spell she should teach them. "I got it!" she yelped and jumped back to her feet. "It's not really a Charm spell, it's a defense spell but it's dead useful and only a few know it!"

Motioning everyone to stand in a line before her, she pointed her wand straight up in the air and circled it over her head as she intoned a short spell. Suddenly a blue light poured down and out from her wand, surrounding Lori in a perfectly round blue bubble of light. When the bubble was complete, she lowered her wand and called out to the others.

"Try to jinx me."

Shrugging their shoulders, the others each fired a spell at Lori in her bubble. Only to have them be absorbed into the bubble-shield.

"Wow! That's better than the shield spell Lily used with Sirius, it completely surrounds you!" Jenn exclaimed as she tried to jinx Lori from behind.

"Yep, it doesn't bounce them back like Lily's but it completely protects you from all sides," Lori called excitedly from her bubble.

"Will it stop the Unforgivable Curses?" Remus asked softly.

"I… I don't know. I've never had anyone shoot one of them at me while in the bubble, just simple jinxes and hexes," Lori replied uncertainly.

"Well, teach us! It could come in handy!" Sirius burst as he shot yet another hex at Lori and watched it get absorbed into the bubble.

An hour later each of them had successfully created a bubble-shield and had it tested by the others. Happily they sprawled out on the rug and chatted about how the spell worked and how it absorbed spells shot from inside as well as out. So while you were safe, you couldn't do anything but sit there. They were also stunned to find out that it moved with you. Other shields were fastened to a particular spot; this one was portable because it was wrapped around you and the air surrounding you.

After resting for a while they headed over to the dining area and picked up plates as food appeared in the dishes. As they ate their lunch the sour mood that had fallen over them during the reading of the new Harry Potter book dissolved and the six of them joked and chatted all through their meal.

When they had finished and cleaned up after themselves they pulled out their school books and started to work on their assignments for the rest of the afternoon. They were just finishing up a two foot essay for Herbology when the door opened and Professor McGonagall entered.

Professor McGonagall stepped inside and locked the door behind and then turned to study the students as they turned to face her. She nodded in satisfaction when she noted that they all had their school books out working on their assignments.

"Wonderful, I trust all your work has been brought up to date?" McGonagall asked softly.

"Yes, ma'am," Lily answered respectfully as she began gathering up her essays.

"If you would be so kind as to seal each one and label the class on the outside I will take them and deliver them to your teachers."

There was a rush of rattling paper as they separated and rolled each essay and sealed them magically with their name and class on the outside. Once that was done they all put them into a bag they conjured and passed their work to Professor McGonagall.

"Here is the next set of assignments and I wanted to let you know that we will be doing practical exams on this material next week. Headmaster Dumbledore is working on securing a classroom where you will be able to show all your teachers what you have learned." Here professor McGonagall stopped as the six teens frowned. "If you have any questions about the practical exams, you may send word via one of the portraits. I will bring you one before tomorrow."

This seemed to ease their minds a bit, but Jenn was still frowning at the thought of a portrait to report their every move to Dumbledore or McGonagall.

"Professor McGonagall? Ma'am?" Jenn spoke out to catch McGonagall's attention.

"Yes?"

"Wouldn't it be easier and more reliable to charm a set of quills so that when we wrote a question here, it would be written on another parchment at the same time?"

McGonagall frowned. "Why would that be easier?"

"Then the portrait wouldn't be able to gossip about us being here, and no other portrait could sneak in and find out where we are. I mean – the fewer who know we are here the better right?" Jenn supplied logically.

"You are right. I will have the quills charmed and one brought over for you as well as extra parchments and ink," McGonagall agreed. Turning she walked to the door, pausing only once to watch them as they sorted through their new work, and left the room.

Lori walked to the door and locked it before turning to Jenn.

"What was that all about?" she questioned.

"A portrait could tell anyone where we are, it could also spy on us as we practiced spells, while we read the book, and while we did anything else," Jenn pointed out as she picked up her textbooks and set them out of the way.

"Good point," Sirius exclaimed.

"Well why didn't you say so in the first place?" Lori demanded.

"Oh yes, I can see that!" Lily put in. "Professor McGonagall, we don't want anyone spying on us while we teach each other forbidden curses, illegal transformations, and read a book about the future."

The boys burst out laughing as Lily finished, imagining the look on McGonagall's face if they were to have said that! Lori just shrugged her shoulders and sat down in the nearest chair and picked up her text books and began reading the next assignment. Soon the others were working on the new assignments as well. After and hour they shut the books and Sirius picked up the Harry Potter book and flipped through the pages to find where he had left off. When the others had settled back, he continued to read.

Remus unfolded Harry's letter and scanned the first page briefly before reading the supply list aloud as Harry listened intently. 

"Not allowed a broom?" Harry gasped in shock. "I won't be able to take my Nimbus?" 

" 'Fraid not Harry. Now, let's see what you already have on this list." 

"Well, I have a silver telescope, two gold cauldrons, six pairs of dragon skin gloves, three crystal phial sets, and two silver sets of weights," Harry answered as he dug through his pile of gifts. 

"Well, the telescope will be fine and you can set aside two of the phial sets in case one breaks, as well as three sets of the gloves. The gold cauldrons and the silver weight sets will have to be returned in exchange for pewter and brass. Then we have to get you a wand," Remus mused as he checked off those items on the list. "Now, what books have you gotten?"

After sorting through the spell books, Harry found he had three of every book on the list. Setting one set beside the crystal phials and telescope to take to school, the other two sets he piled with the other stuff that would have to be sold, exchanged, or given to charities. 

"Alright, all that is left for us to get is your school robes, a cloak and hat, one cauldron, a set of weights, a wand, and you can pick your own pet when we get there." Remus announced as he folded the list up and stuffed it in a pocket. "Why don't you take those school things up to your room and pack them in a trunk and get dressed. Your Aunt will be down soon and we will eat before we head out to get the rest of your school stuff"

"Yes sir, Uncle Remus."

It took Harry three trips to carry all of his school stuff up stairs in addition to the two new brooms, and several boxes of candy. Carefully he set the books and other school items in a brand new brass lined trunk he had gotten weeks ago. 

Dressing he rushed back downstairs to find his aunt cooking eggs and sausages for breakfast. 

"Good Morning, Auntie," Harry said as he hugged her and sat down at the table. 

"Good morning, Harry dear," She replied as she turned the sausage. "Why don't you count your birthday money and put it in one of the gold cauldrons you got. We can take it in to Gringotts before we do your school shopping." 

"Alright, Auntie," Harry replied as he dragged the largest cauldron over and started counting gold Galleons before moving onto the silver Sickles and lastly a scattering of bronze Knuts. He was just finishing up when Monica placed a plate piled high with sausages and eggs before him. 

"So how much have you got there?" Remus asked as he sat down beside Harry with his own plate of food.

"I have one hundred twenty nine Galleons, eighty three Sickles, and thirty two Knuts," Harry replied as he took a large bite from a sausage. "That's almost twice as much as last year."

"Yes, well there were fewer actual presents sent this year as well."

"Good lord!" Lily whispered. "That was fewer then the previous year? And he gets more money in one day than most wizards earn in a month!"

"Wow," Lori murmured wide eyed. "That's more then enough to last him for three years at Hogwarts, if he was careful how he spent it."

"I bet he has much more than that in the bank as well," Jenn added as she shook her head in wonder.

"I can't read anymore right now," Sirius announced. "My head is reeling."

"That's alright, Sirius," James said softly.

* * *

**AN:** I just wanted to apologize for taking so long to get this up and posted, but until now I've been working on a web project for a client and haven't had much time for editing the formatting of this story and double checking my spelling/grammar. It also doesn't help that my attention has been wandering lately every time I try to work on this one. The next chapter shouldn't take as long though. ~crosses fingers~ Thank you to everyone who has reviewed and/or favorited/alerted this story! – Jenn.


	3. Sneaking Out

**DISCLAIMER:** _ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 3: Sneaking Out**

"I want to finish my Potions essay," Jenn stated out of the blue as she pulled her class books back out. "Then I will only have the Herbology essay and my star chart for Astronomy left."

"I should finish Professor McGonagall's essay too, then I will only have to look up poison antidotes for Professor Slughorn," Lily sighed as she too picked up her school books.

Soon all six of them had their books open and were looking up information on poisons, mandrakes, and star patterns. As the sun sank below the horizon a strange scratching noise could be heard coming from the door. Lily was the first to notice it because Ashes was straining to climb to his feet and hissing softly at the door. The others dropped what they were doing when Lily stood up and tip-toed over to the door and placed her ear against it to listen.

There it was again, a tiny scritch scratching around the bottom of the door, as if something was trying to get in. Lily turned and shared a confused look with the others, who looked just as puzzled. James quietly came up beside her and listened intently for several minutes before the sound suddenly stopped.

When after waiting several minutes longer for it to start up again, nothing happened they moved back and tried to go back to their studies.

"This isn't working; I can't concentrate now," Lily sighed as she slammed her books shut.

"I'm hungry," Sirius mumbled as he too closed his books.

"You're always hungry Padfoot," Remus pointed out sardonically.

Sirius just mock pouted and playfully stuck his tongue out at the werewolf while the others laughed.

"What time is it anyway?" James asked as he picked up his and Lily's books and put them off to the side.

"It's after six o'clock," Jenn replied after a quick glance at her watch.

"Let's eat supper and then we can practice some more spells or read from the book," Lily suggested.

"Sounds good to me," Remus replied as he stood up and helped Lori to her feet.

Once more they migrated over to the platters and plates on the table and watched as several dishes appeared. Picking up a plate, Lily piled poached salmon, steamed rice, fresh veggies, and a dinner roll before pouring herself a huge goblet of Pumpkin juice. Taking her supper she went and sat down on the floor and leaned back against a chair as she picked at her food. The others soon joined her and an uneasy silence descended as everyone ate and wondered at the strange scratching that they had heard at the door.

"I wonder what it was," Jenn murmured around a bite of fried trout.

"Could have been a house elf," James offered.

"Wouldn't an elf have knocked though?" Lily countered.

"Sounded more like an animal," Remus added as he cut into his baked chicken.

"Could have been a rat," Sirius commented after he swallowed a bit of battered cod.

"A rat? Nah, the only rat I know of in Hogwarts is too scared to step foot out of the dorms by himself after dark," James dismissed.

"What do you think Peter is doing without us anyway?" Remus asked.

"Probably chewing his blankets in fear and jumping at every little sound," Sirius replied a bit mockingly as he got up for seconds.

"Wouldn't he wander around the castle looking for you three?" Jenn asked.

"Nah, not by himself, he's too afraid of his own shadow. Besides I am sure Dumbledore or McGonagall would have told him what happened to us," James answered.

"Would he be in danger?" Lily asked softly.

At this the three Marauders went silent and glanced at each other.

"It's possible, many people know we all hung out together, but Peter hasn't been hanging out with us much all year. He's behind in his studies and he might not graduate with us," Remus responded slowly.

"We usually helped him every year before now, but so far this year he hasn't taken us up on the offered help. He's been acting weird since the end of last year," James added casually.

"Could he have found someone else to hang out with?" Lori queried.

"Maybe, but I wouldn't know who. Not many people liked the little rat," Sirius said offhandedly.

"Are you sure he is the only rat in Hogwarts?" Jenn mused.

"Pretty sure, not many students are interested in bringing rats to school as pets," Remus supplied. "Even magical rats that perform Merlin knows what kind of tricks aren't popular school pets. Besides, I'm not sure they're even allowed at Hogwarts for fear of them breeding with the rats in the Forbidden Forest and infesting the castle."

"Would he have any reason to follow Lily?" Jenn asked pointedly.

"N-o. I don't think so," James said uncertainly. "Why?"

"Don't you remember what Lily said the night we came here to hide? About the rat or rats she has been seeing all over the castle?" Jenn inquired.

"No, I'd forgotten," Sirius answered.

"So did I," James admitted.

"I remembered. I just don't see where you are going with this," Remus replied.

"Well, if you are all certain that Peter is the only rat in Hogwarts, and Lily is certain that she has seen a rat following her and watching her several times since school started, then Peter has been spying on her and following her around the castle," Jenn spouted logically.

"You know it is really annoying when you use logic like that," James said as he held his head in mock pain.

Jenn smirked at him, "Well, are you certain he is the only rat in Hogwarts this year?"

"Pretty certain, but the only way to find out for sure is to sneak out of here and search the castle," Sirius offered.

"How are we going to manage that?" Lily asked.

"The cloak!" James and Sirius yelled at the same time.

"It's a shame we don't have the map anymore," Remus said sadly. "We wouldn't have had to leave the room then. We could have just looked on the map and seen who was at the door."

Sirius and James stopped laughing when they heard this. The confiscated map would have been extremely helpful right at the moment.

"What if we went and got the map back?" Jenn wondered aloud.

"Break into Filch's office?" James asked wide eyed. "Why didn't I think of that?"

"No logic," Jenn said sweetly.

"Hey!" James barked as he turned to see her smile innocently at him.

"Well, it is true, James," Lily added matter-of-factly.

"Yes, but -" James stammered.

"No buts. We all know it," Lily interrupted. James pouted and huffed as he stood up to put his plate back. Lily and Jenn shared a look at this and then burst out laughing.

"So, are we going on a rescue mission?" Sirius demanded as he too put his plate back.

"Well, it is a logical step," Jenn remarked.

"Shall we break out the cloak then?" Remus asked.

"Yes!" James and Sirius shouted at the same time again.

"I think that it might be best if we don't all go," Lori spoke up suddenly.

"Why?" Sirius asked.

"In case McGonagall comes while we are gone," Lori replied. "How would she react if we were all gone?"

"Who should go then?" Remus asked.

"Well, it should be two of us," James replied as he sat back down with cloak in hand. "We need at least one look out and one person to break into Filch's office."

"I have my knife for the locks!" Sirius announced as he pulled a special pocket knife out of his pocket.

"Then I think we should have one more person in case something goes wrong. That way someone can get back here to let the others know what happened," Jenn logically inserted.

"All right; Sirius goes for the locks, I go for a lookout and we just need one more person who can be an informant if things go wrong. Who wants to?"

"I'll go," Jenn offered after her and the girls shared a quick look. "It was my idea and I can move quickly and quietly enough."

"Okay, let's move," James ordered as he stood up and waved the cloak.

Lily, Lori, and Remus watched as the three of them disappeared under the invisibility cloak. Lily bit her lip as she watched the door open and close by itself and Remus locked it back up.

"What do we tell McGonagall if she asks where they are?" Lori asked.

"Well, Jenn can be in the bath. And James and Sirius can -"

"Be in the showers as well," Remus supplied. "There are two bathrooms in here."

Sure enough as soon as Remus said it, a second door appeared beside the first and each door now sported a sign declaring a girls' bathroom and a boys' bathroom.

Lily smiled and got up to walk over to the girls. Going inside she turned on the water and filled up the tub. Next she charmed the water into waves that periodically splashed against the sides, sounding just like someone bathing.

Chuckling Remus entered the boy's bathroom and turned on two showers, leaving the water run he stepped back out and watched as a bit of steam seeped from under the door.

"There, now only we will know they are gone," Remus chuckled.

"Unless they get caught," Lily said with a smile.

"Let's practice Cheering Charms while we wait then," Lori said as she took her wand out.

Soon they were all smiling and laughing in spite of the nervousness they felt because of the charms effects.

* * *

After slipping out the door and quietly moving down the corridor James, Sirius, and Jenn headed for the stairs. Every few feet they stopped and listened carefully, without the map they had to be extra careful in case they ran into a teacher or Filch. Carefully stepping around the trick step on the stairs, they made their way down to the first floor and headed over to Filch's office. Peering in the window they could see Filch sitting at his desk muttering to himself as he scribbled furiously on a sheet of parchment.

James swore silently as he sat back on his heels, he had been hoping Filch would be out wandering the halls of the castle. They stood there silently watching the care taker for several minutes before Jenn started poking his arm to get his attention and then signaled that they should move away from the office door. Nodding the three of them moved back and then peered around to be sure they were alone when Jenn whispered her idea to James and Sirius.

"I think one of us should go create a distraction to draw him out of his office. We can't very well look for the map with him sitting right there, even with the cloak."

"True," James agreed. "Should we all go?"

"No, I think it best if I go. Then you and Sirius could get in his office while I kept him busy. He'll think it Peeves making trouble for him and search every floor trying to catch him in the act!"

"Are you sure? What if you get caught?" Sirius asked in concern.

"Don't worry I won't."

"Who takes the cloak though?" James asked.

"You two will. I won't need it."

"How so?" Sirius asked in wonder.

"I have a way. Don't worry, I won't get caught. It's why I volunteered in case you two got caught. I can only give you about twenty minutes in there, and then you are on your own."

The boys nodded and watched as Jenn slipped out from under the cloak. Taking out her wand she muttered something and the boys gasped slightly in amazement as she started to blend into the background behind her. When she moved, they could see her blurred form but if she stood perfectly still she blended into the background perfectly.

"Hey! That's a disillusionment charm isn't it?" Sirius cried softly.

"Yep. My father taught me that one as soon as I was old enough, insisted I know how to hide myself if the need ever arose," Jenn whispered a touch sadly as she thought of her recently deceased father.

"Cool, you'll have to teach us that one!" James called softly as she moved off.

"We'll see. Give me about five, ten minutes to get up to the second floor and create a diversion to draw Filch out. As soon as he leaves his office, sneak in and find the map. Remember I can't give you more then twenty minutes, so don't try to be cleaver and play any more tricks on him!"

"Spoil sport!" Sirius cried softly as Jenn slipped down the hall and back up the stairs.

James and Sirius gathered themselves and moved back over next to Filch's office door. They didn't have long to wait when a loud crash echoed through the entire castle.

Filch came bursting out of his office and the door banged into Sirius. Filch never noticed that the door stopped suddenly because he was rushing up the stairs in the direction of the noises.

Silently, the boys snuck into the open office and headed for the filing cabinet. Sirius used his pocket knife to open the top drawer and began searching for the map.

While he worked James slipped back to the door to watch for Filch wearing the invisibility cloak down around his neck so Sirius could see where he was.

Fifteen minutes later Sirius still hadn't found the map. He was just opening the drawer labeled Dangerous Artifacts when a second crashing sound came from upstairs. James hissed to Sirius to hurry up when suddenly Sirius gave a small triumphant hoot and came over waving the map in his hand. James quickly lifted his cloak and let Sirius slip underneath.

As they stepped out of Filch's office, Sirius couldn't help but notice that Filch had left his keys sitting on the desk. Grinning wickedly Sirius locked the door and shut it firmly. James shared a quick evil glance with Sirius and took out his wand and whispered a soft spell and watched as a sticky-glue-like substance formed on the door's handle.

Sirius gave James the thumbs up sign and they backed away from the office door, as they turned to go back the way they came from, Mrs. Norris came scurrying around the corner. Stepping back hastily so as not to step on her James accidentally knocked a suit of armor over, making a loud clattering noise that seemed to echo up and down the hall.

Frozen in terror they watched as Mrs. Norris turned and looked right at them and began meowing. In the background they could hear the sound of running footsteps and they high-tailed it down the corridor and into an empty classroom as Filch came rushing around the corner yelling for Peeves to show himself.

Grinning in relief the boys peered out of the open door and watched as Filch searched up and down the hall looking for Peeves. When Filch finally gave up he headed back towards his office only to find the door shut. Grumbling to himself as he searched for his keys, Filch frowned after checking every pocket. He peered through the window and swore exquisitely when he saw his keys sitting on the desk.

James and Sirius fell into a silent laughing fit as they watched Filch reach for the door handle and give it a quick turn to see if it was locked. When he couldn't open the door, Filch tried to let go of the door but found that it was stuck. Confused, Filch tried to jerk his hand free a second time to no avail.

Sirius was bursting as he tried not to make a sound as they watched Filch struggling to get his hand off of the door knob. Tears leaking out of his eyes as they listened to the lavish array of curses that Filch growled out as he tugged and tugged at his hand. Finally the two boys slipped out of the class room and tip-toed past the still fumbling care taker and moved off in search of Jenn. Slinking carefully up the stairs, they made it halfway up when they bumped into someone blocking the way.

"Ouch," Jenn cried out in a barely contained whisper.

"Jenn?"

"Sirius?"

"Yes, and James."

"Boy! Am I ever glad you found me first," Jenn exclaimed in relief. "I was setting up a third crash when Filch almost caught me. I rushed down the stairs and forgot about the sinking step," here she made a blurry attempt to point at her leg, which was buried up to her knee in the step, but the boys couldn't really see what she was doing, "When there suddenly came a loud crashing from downstairs. He went running right past me, he even stepped on my foot. He never noticed though, he was saying I have him now over and over again all the way down and around the corner."

Sirius and James laughed and told her that they had bumped into a suit of armor knocking it over. They also mentioned that Filch had somehow managed to lock himself out of his office without his keys. This made the boys laugh even harder for some reason. But they didn't mention the jinx James had used to glue Filch's hand to the door.

"Well, did you get the map?" Jenn asked. "And will one or both of you please help me out?"

"Yes, we have the map," James answered.

"What do you need help with?" Sirius asked.

"I'm stuck in the step you doorknobs," Jenn cried softly.

This made Sirius and James laugh again as they tried to help her out of the trick step. After two unsuccessful attempts they finally managed to free her leg. Jenn slipped under the cloak with the boys and the three of them quietly made their way back to the others in the Room of Requirement. As they approached the door they noticed that it hung open. Silently they crept closer and found that McGonagall was standing in the doorway with one hand one the door talking to the others.

"– goodnight then and I trust you to pass along the news to the others when they are finished. Lock the door and do not open for anyone." Stepping into the hall she closed the door softly and waited for it to click shut, before she marched off in the direction of her office.

James waited until he heard her footsteps fade away before he knocked on the door softly. For several second nothing happened, and then Lily's voice came whispering through the keyhole.

"James?"

"Yes, let us in."

On the other side of the door Remus whispered urgently to Lily as they watched the door intently. "We don't know for sure it's them."

"What do we do then?" Lily whispered in frustration.

"Ask them a question only James would know."

"But what though?"

"I don't know. Ask him what form your Pyroteraformus takes," Remus suggested.

Lily nodded and then turned back to whisper through the door a second time.

"What form does our Pyroteraformus take?"

From outside the door James looked stumped for a brief minute before he answered.

"Well, yours and mine are deer, Remus a wolf, Sirius a dog, and… and Jenn a horse."

"Lori is a song bird," Jenn added.

Lily unlocked the door and let them in holding the door for only a short moment before closing it quickly and locking it back up. She turned as Sirius pulled the cloak off and was a bit confused when only the two boys appeared. There was no sign of Jenn.

* * *

**AN:** _Finally! I didn't think I'd ever get this up. It's been a hectic few weeks and the time I've had for editing has been extremely limited as I mentioned before. On the up side, I already have the next chapter done as well (I was on a roll last night!) so the next chapter will be posted in a couple of days and I expect to have at least two more chapters uploaded by then so I can once more return to posting chapters every 3-6 days as I did before. Anywho... Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Jenn_


	4. Unsettling Discoveries

**DISCLAIMER:** _ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 4: Unsettling Discoveries**

"Where's Jenn?"

"I'm right here," Jenn answered.

"Where?" Lily asked baffled.

"Here!" Jenn laughed as she slowly faded into view.

"That is a cool spell Jenn; won't you teach us that one?" Sirius begged.

"Maybe," Jenn said offhandedly

"Well did you get the map?" Remus asked as James folded his cloak and put it away.

"Of course!" Sirius boasted as he waved the parchment around.

"Did everything go as planned?" Lori asked from her chair.

"Yes and no," James replied as he wondered over and sat down. "Who's in the bathroom splashing and running the water?"

Lily and Lori burst out laughing at this and sputtered out together, "You three are!"

"Huh?" Sirius asked in confusion.

"We turned on the water after you left so that it was running when McGonagall came in. We thought it would be better if you were uh, otherwise occupied in case she wondered where you were," Remus explained.

"I charmed the tub in the girls' bathroom to splash by itself too, couldn't have Jenn in the same shower as you boys now could we," Lily added still laughing.

Jenn agreed and chuckled as she headed to go empty the tub from the bath she was supposedly having when McGonagall stopped by. James went in and turned off the water in the other bathroom and then sat near Sirius.

"What did Professor McGonagall want?" James asked.

"She wanted to check on us and she dropped off the charmed quill. She also wanted to make sure we didn't leave the room and we didn't let anyone in. Apparently there have been strange crashes all over the castle tonight and Filch was attacked outside his office."

At this Jenn, Sirius, and James burst out laughing and told the others what had happened. Soon the others were laughing as well.

"Who attacked Filch though?" Lily asked as she gasped for breath.

James grinned mischievously and answered vaguely, "His own door did."

"Huh?" Jenn asked in confusion.

"We watched his own door attack him. He went to open it and then he was stuck. It wouldn't let go of his hand," Sirius said in a choked voice as he tried not to laugh.

"You jinxed him didn't you?" Jenn asked.

"Nope," Sirius answered honestly.

"I jinxed the door!" James crowed as he told them about the glue spell he put on the handle. "You should have heard him cussing up a storm!"

Jenn just rolled her eyes and shook her head as she caught Lily's eye.

"Let's take a look at the map shall we." Remus said as he tapped the map and intoned, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good."

Lily and Lori leaned over his shoulder as the lines and halls of Hogwarts crept into view. Scanning the moving dots on the map, James read the names and where they were aloud.

"Filch is pacing his office (he must have gotten loose), Dumbledore is walking with McGonagall on the first floor, Mrs. Norris is sniffing along the third corridor, and Madam Pomfrey is tending a student in the hospital wing."

"There's Wormtail," Sirius pointed out quietly.

"He is in rat form then," Remus stated slowly.

James frowned for the tiny dot labeled Wormtail was slinking up the stairs from the first floor. Pulling out his wand James waved it once in a figure eight pattern and tapped the map three times firmly.

"Show me all rats in the school. Moving or not," he commanded of the map.

The dot named Wormtail grew a second label: Rat. No other dots appeared. Sirius took a sharp breath and held it. Pulling out his wand slowly he too waved it in a figure eight over the map and tapped it three times.

"Show me all cats in the school, moving or not." Sirius ordered.

Dots bloomed all over the map marked with names such as Fluffy, Cardigan, Miffy, Mr. Jingles, Clarence, Ashes, Fluffy, and of course Mrs. Norris.

James stood up, took hold of the map, and quickly wiped it with a crisp, "mischief managed" before tucking it away inside his shirt.

"Okay, so we now know for sure Peter is the only rat in the school. That still doesn't explain why he is following Lily and spying on her, nor does it explain why he's wandering around the school at night by himself, in rat form," Jenn pointed out.

"Didn't you say he's been acting weird since the end of last year?" Lily asked tentatively.

"Yes, you did," Jenn answered for the Marauders.

"He's been distant, but that's all." James replied offhandedly.

"Are you certain? I mean, you four have been fast friends since your first year. How can he all of a sudden shun you?" Jenn asked logically.

"It's really not fair when you use logic on us," James complained.

"What about him taking the map on the day Lily was taken from the castle?" Remus added softly. "And then there is his behavior after the four of you rescued her to consider."

"Not to mention that Peter was with us the day Lily fell down the bleachers in the practice field," Lori tossed in.

"I don't believe that Peter would mean any of us any harm though. He's not even very good at any charms or transfiguration spells, he can't get a single potion right, and he falls to pieces when a wand is pointed in his general direction. I mean the guy is afraid of his own shadow!" Sirius exclaimed in Peter's defense.

"But he does know the castle better than any other student, his size as a rat allows him to get into places even a kneazle couldn't squeeze into," Remus stated. "He's also good with plants, I mean he's the smallest of us and if the Whomping Willow managed to catch him he'd be in a world of hurt and yet he's the one that always freezes the tree so the rest of us can enter the passageway beneath the roots. He isn't a complete coward."

"You both have good points," Jenn admitted grudgingly. "But that doesn't help us figure out what is up with Peter."

"What now?" Lily asked forlornly.

* * *

_Meanwhile two hours earlier, long before the map had been retrieved from Filch's office: _

Monica was sitting quietly in an armchair in the corner of the common room reading a book when she heard someone call her name.

"M-m-monica?"

Looking up she saw Peter Pettigrew nervously dancing from foot to foot in front of her.

"Yes?"

"I… I was wondering… You see…" Peter stammered. "I… I think I know… w-w-where Lily and t-t-the ot-thers are…"

"You do? That's great!" Monica exclaimed as she jumped up and gave Peter a quick hug.

Embarrassed Peter turned beet red and tried to slip out of her embrace.

"Will you take me to them?"

"Of c-c-course I w-will. I p-p-promised didn't-t I?" Peter answered nervously. "We h-h-have to h-h-hurry though. They said that they c-c-couldn't stay l-long."

"Oh, I hope we are not too late!" Monica fussed as she turned to close her book and grabbed her wand from off the table beside the chair. "Let's hurry!"

Peter and Monica slipped quietly out of the common room and moved off down the hall. Peter led her through a series of hidden passages and shortcuts till they were on the first floor. Moving to one side, Peter asked her to wait while he checked to be sure no one would see them leave the castle.

"All c-c-clear," Peter stuttered when he returned. "We have t-t-to hurry though. They are w-w-waiting for us!"

Peter led Monica out the door and down the steps, staying in the shadows they moved silently towards the edge of the forest that bordered Hogsmeade.

"In here," Peter whispered as he pointed down the path leading into the woods.

"How much further Peter?" Monica whispered.

"N-n-not f-f-far n-now, M-Monica," Peter stammered out a little loudly.

Monica flinched at the sound of his voice, she was scared now and it felt as though someone was watching her through the trees.

"Are you sure this is where they are? I thought Dumbledore had said they were in the castle?" Monica asked desperately.

"They are here," Peter answered quietly and for the first time that night, without stuttering.

Weaving through the trees Peter led them deeper yet into the forest, it was several minutes before Monica noticed a light flickering somewhere up a head.

"Oh thank goodness, I see a light up ahead. That is them right?"

"Yes."

Monica rushed ahead towards the light and never noticed Peter had stopped where he was. The flickering lights grew brighter as Monica hurried into a clearing. Looking around she saw torches placed around the edge of the clearing, but didn't see a single soul in the clearing.

"Lily? Jenn? Lori?" she called out tentatively as she searched the clearing. "Peter where are they? Peter?"

Monica turned to see why Peter wasn't answering when she noticed that he was no where to be seen. Terrified now because she was alone Monica pulled out her wand and searched more carefully in the clearing. Frowning, she turned to head back to the castle thinking Peter had pranked her just for sport.

"Stupid prat. I knew I never should have trusted him. I bet he doesn't even know where the others are," Monica muttered furiously under her breath.

She was just stepping back into the cover of the trees when she heard a twig snap behind her. Thinking it was Peter trying to scare her she turned to scold him. Monica's scornful tirade died on her lips as she saw who was there.

* * *

Peter cringed in the forest where he waited; he could hear Monica's footsteps growing fainter as she rushed towards the lights. He knew it was just a matter of minutes before she realized what had happened. After waiting what seemed like hours, but was actually only about ten minutes, Peter heard a scream echo through the forest followed by an unnatural silence.

Shaking like a leaf, Peter transformed himself into rat form and made his way back to the castle. Once inside he hurried up to the third floor and searched up and down the hall until he found the door he was looking for. Listening to the murmuring voices that drifted through the door the rat smiled to itself and scratched at the door. The silence from inside encouraged him and he scratched several times and then listened as footsteps rushed over and stopped at the door.

Nodding in satisfaction, the rat scurried back down the corridor and moved back towards the front door of the school. He was just about to creep back out into the night when a shadow passed over him and he saw Professor McGonagall shut the door and rush off to find Dumbledore. Trapped inside, Peter the rat slunk back into the shadows under the stair way to watch and listen for a chance to escape into the night.

* * *

Professor McGonagall knocked on the door a second time as she muttered worriedly to herself. She was about to knock a third time when the door opened and a disheveled Dumbledore appeared before her. With one look at her face, Dumbledore ushered McGonagall inside to his office and listened to her as she explained what she feared. They were still discussing what to do when several crashes rang throughout the castle. Without a word they rushed out into the castle to investigate the noises.

A top to bottom search turned up nothing but Filch cursing outside his office. Hand glued to the door he swore up and down that he had been attacked while writing up his paper work. McGonagall rushed off to the third floor to check on the six students who were secured there. Upon opening the door she had feared the worst; only three of them were sitting there practicing charm work.

"Where are Potter, Black, and Parksen?" McGonagall had demanded of Lily once she'd gotten the students attention.

"They're in the bathroom Professor. Jenn is taking a bath," Lily had answered a little quickly. "The boys are in the shower."

McGonagall had stared at her for several minutes not believing what she was hearing when the sound of water splashing had intruded onto her growing panic. Looking up she saw two bathrooms on the far side and heard running water from one and the splashing from the second.

Sighing in relief she turned to leave and paused at the door while she admonished the students to be careful and keep the door locked and not to let any but her and Dumbledore into the room.

Once out in the corridor McGonagall turned and watched the door thoughtfully for a second before hurrying back down to the first floor where she met with Dumbledore. Little did she know that she had just passed by Sirius, James and Jenn hiding just outside the room under the invisibility cloak.

* * *

"Why don't we read some more of the book?" Lori suggested. "That way we can learn more of what's going to happen."

Everyone slowly agreed and this time Lori picked up the book and skipped through the pages to find where Sirius had left off earlier. Once she found the page, she began reading aloud.

"There were lots of cards though," Monica said as she sat down on the other side of Harry and buttered a couple slices of toast."

"Yes and each card had at least one or two coins in it," Harry replied matter-of-factly. "Will we be leaving soon?"

"Right after breakfast we'll pack all of this up in a trunk and head out. Make sure you keep the cauldron of money separate so you can make a deposit once we get there," Remus replied. 

"Okay, Uncle Moony. May I go fly on my new broom while I wait?"

"No, finish your breakfast." 

"Okay," Harry sulked as he munched on another piece of sausage.

"He acts as though he's being punished!" James cried.

"Just like Dudley in the first book," Jenn compared softly.

"You mean the blob? The pig-in-wig?" Sirius gasped. "You are right Jenn! He's just as spoiled!"

"I don't know how I could ever possibly have let him get that way though," Remus frowned as he spoke. "I obviously try to keep him in line, but I wonder…"

"What?" Lily asked as Remus trailed off staring in the distance.

"Well, maybe I am not the one who spoiled him."

James turned his head and gave Remus a thoughtful look.

"I think maybe we should read more," James added as he continued to consider his friend.

Lori turned back to the book and read on.

"Oh let him go Remus, we can pack this up faster without him underfoot. Can you blame him for wanting to go play on his new broom?" Monica chided as Harry jumped up hurriedly and rushed upstairs to get his broom before his uncle could say no a second time.

Remus sighed in frustration as he turned to face Monica.

"I really wish you wouldn't countermand me like that Monica. You are constantly giving into his every whim and he's getting to be spoiled."

"Nonsense. He's a growing boy and he needs exercise. I wouldn't have to cut him so much slack if you weren't so hard on him."

"I am hard on him? That is news to me. I am trying to raise him the way his parents would have raised him if they were alive. Don't you care that he's turning into a self-centered spoiled brat?"

"That's a fine thing to say of your best friend's son. Have you no care that he will hear you? Really Remus, I am surprised at you," Monica lashed back.

"I never would have expected you to treat him the way you -" 

"Me?" She interrupted. "How dare you lay this at my feet! I have given that boy the love he needs, while you restrict his every move. I watch you do it all the time. You try to play everything down. He will be the greatest wizard of all when he is finished his schooling and all you care about is that he learns to do a few meaningless chores around the house!"

Wearily Remus stood up from the table and slammed both hands down on top of it, causing both the table and Monica to jump slightly.

"I have had enough of your accusations woman. If you don't care how spoiled he turns out, then that is on you. You can be responsible for his future. I am going in to work. _You_ can be the one to tell Harry that I will not be going with you to Diagon Alley to get his school things," Remus raged as he pulled out the Hogwarts letter and tossed in on the table in front of Monica.

"Don't you dare leave this all on me!" Monica shrieked as Remus started walking out the door. When Remus ignored her she ran after him and yanked on his arm. "I will **not** let you do this to me!"

"You did it to yourself," Remus replied coldly as he shook her arm off and started walking.

"I am not staying here while you skip out!" Monica yelled.

Remus turned at the top of the stairs and stared indifferently down at her.

Monica glared as he watched her with what looked like scorn. She hated it when he acted this way; he always made it seem as if she was a child. As she felt her face flush with anger Monica suddenly gave a short scream of frustration and then apparated out of the house. 

At the top of the stairs Remus sighed and sank down onto the top step. He sat there with his face in hands for several minutes before he walked slowly back downstairs and began packing up the gifts that Harry would exchange.

"Oh wow," Lori looked up at Remus to see his face drained of all color. The six of them sat silently as they took in what they had just read.

"Remus?" James asked softly.

"What?" Remus choked out in a strangled voice.

"I am truly sorry that I blamed you earlier. I should never have yelled at you like that."

Remus laughed suddenly, "I'm glad you finally realized that." He chuckled.

"You know, I don't think we should ever upset him again," Sirius murmured softly as he watched Remus.

This made all the girls laugh. After a minute, Remus, then James, and finally Sirius joined in. As the tension melted away they got up and headed over for a snack and found desserts piled high on the platters. Apple pies, lemon pies, pecan pies, pumpkin pies, key lime pies, cookies of every sort, ice cream and puddings, cakes and candies.

Heaping their plates they moved back over and sat down in a circle and ate as they talked about the turn of events in the book.

"It sounds like you and Monica disagreed about the way Harry has been raised throughout the years," Lori said delicately.

"Ya think?" James snorted.

"I didn't notice anything out of the ordinary," Sirius drawled out as he pretended he couldn't see Remus. "Ole Moony seems just as quarrelsome as ever. You know he does nothing but fight, whine and complain. And then he has these sulking fits, oh you don't want to know."

"Sirius," Remus called sweetly, "Oh Sirius."

"Oh, Moony, I didn't see you sitting there," Sirius cried happily.

Remus just smiled and pointed his wand at Sirius muttering and waving it in small circles.

"Now Moony…" Sirius started.

A loud popping sound interrupted Sirius and a billow of purple smoke engulfed him as Remus sat down chuckling to himself.

"What did you do to him?" Jenn asked curiously as the smoke continued to circle Sirius.

"Give it a minute," Remus instructed as he pointed to Sirius.

The smoke slowly grew thinner and sank towards the ground; still Sirius couldn't be seen although he should have been. A soft snuffling sound could be heard coming from within the cloud. The last wisps of smoke cleared as though a breeze had pushed them aside, and there sitting on the floor was a wooden box. From inside the box came a series of snorts and grunts. Jenn walked over and peered inside.

"Oh how cute!" she cried as she reached inside and pulled out a baby pot-bellied pig. "Don't you look so sweet Sirius?" James and Remus burst out laughing as Sirius the pig squealed and snorted and grunted while trying to wiggle out of Jenn's grasp. Finally managing to slip free of Jenn, he trotted and squealed loudly up at Remus.

"Are you going to behave then?" Remus asked the pig. The pig grunted and nodded its head stiffly.

"Do you promise?" Remus asked. This time the pig squealed and snorted as it stood up and turned its behind to Remus. "Well, do you promise?" Remus asked a second time.

Turning to face Remus the pig growled loudly and then reluctantly nodded its head a second time, all the while snorting and grunting under its breath.

"That's better," Remus announced. "Now, mind your manners and I will change you back."

The pig grunted several times as Remus muttered the counter spell while circling his wand in the opposite direction as before. This time turquoise smoke billowed out to surround Sirius the pig and it got thicker as it swelled up until suddenly it formed a solid wall around where the pig had been sitting.

A loud banging and muttered curses could be heard from inside the walls of frozen smoke.

"Oh dear. You weren't minding your manners as I changed you back were you Sirius?" Remus tutted as he walked up to the barrier that enclosed Sirius. "I guess you'll have to stay in there until it grows brittle enough to break out.

Sirius hollered out something no one could understand and suddenly the whole wall of frozen smoke crumbled at his feet. Sirius was fuming as he glared at Remus.

"That was low," Sirius said stiffly as he turned and walked away – a little piggy tail still attached to his rear.


	5. Reading On

**DISCLAIMER:** _ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 5: Reading On**

The others burst out laughing as Sirius sat down and ignored them. After a few minutes the laughter died out completely and Sirius finally stopped pouting at being pranked by a fellow Marauder. Seeing James and Sirius starting to twitch a bit over the moment of inactivity, Lori picked the book back up and kept laughing as she located where she had stopped and continued to read out loud. The others soon settled down and listened.

He had just finished packing up the last of the spell books when Harry came running inside, his face flushed with excitement.

"Uncle Remus, you won't believe what I just did!" Harry cried as he stopped in front of Remus breathing heavily as he tried to catch his breath. "You'll never guess what it was!"

"Hmm," Remus murmured thoughtfully. "You just flew on your new broom."

"Uncle Remus!" Harry cried in exasperation. "That's _not_ what I meant!"

Remus chuckled as he ruffled Harry's hair and stood up.

"Well then, since you said I would never guess, why don't you tell me?"

"I raced an eagle! And I caught up to it and look! I got a tail feather from it!" Harry exclaimed as he waved a ragged tail feather for his uncle to see.

"That wasn't very nice to pull a feather from the eagle Harry. You should only gather them from the ground when they fall out naturally, so you won't hurt the eagle and make it so it can't fly and hunt for food."

Harry's face fell at the short lecture Remus gave him about the bird. He knew his uncle expected an apology and a promise he wouldn't do it again, but he also knew that his aunt would be excited for him.

"I don't believe it. He's turned into a complete monster. Before, he would have never have considered hurting an animal. Now he's chasing deer and pulling feathers from eagles!" Lily growled in consternation.

"He does seem to have turned into quite a prat hasn't he?" James replied sorrowfully.

"I don't believe how Monica has spoiled him. She is nothing like that now! Is she?" Lori wondered.

"She acts like a spoiled brat at times, but overall she's really nice and cares about animals, and her friends. If it weren't for the book I would suggest that she join us here. I worry about her," Jenn said quietly.

"She's smart and she's quick, even if she does tend to be over dramatic," Lily added fondly. "Maybe we should bring her here regardless of the book. Everyone knows we hung out with her."

"We could talk to Dumbledore in the morning about it," James murmured. "That way we don't have to leave the room for now. McGonagall seemed serious about us staying locked up for now."

"That would be a huge relief. I know the book frightened her, but I think with all of us here she'll be fine with it," Lily said with a grin as she caught James's eye.

James grinned back and the two of them sat staring at each other long after Lori had continued to read from the book.

"Where's Auntie Monica?" he asked. 

"She had to leave. Something came up and well, she couldn't wait to tell you before she had to leave," Remus answered evasively. 

"Oh. Will she meet us in Diagon Alley when she is done?" Harry asked hopefully. 

"I don't know," Remus replied. "I'm sure she will make an effort to be there. Why don't you put your broom away and come back down and we will go take care of everything and see if she shows up while we are there."

"Okay, Uncle Remus," Harry said sadly as he took his broom upstairs and dropped it next to his other presents. 

Skipping back down the stairs he saw his uncle pick up his school list from the floor under the table and wondered how it got there. But as soon as Remus stood up and smiled at Harry, he forgot all about the list and hurried over to help his uncle pull the extra gifts to the fireplace and waited while uncle Remus got the pot of Floo powder down and added a pinch before they both stepped into the fire and called out, "Diagon Alley".

Soaring through the network Harry closed his eyes and marveled at the queasy feeling he always got when spinning through the fireplaces. It was almost as fun as when he dived straight at the ground on his broom, a feeling of scary excitement winding through his stomach at the fear of crashing. He loved that feeling. Soon they were spilling out into the barroom of the Leaky Cauldron and after dusting the ashes from their clothes and waving to Tom the barkeep, they headed out back and tapped on the bricks that led into Diagon Alley. 

Harry felt a new kind of excitement filling him as he suddenly realized that he was here to get his school equipment and he would be learning _real_ magic now. Smiling up at his uncle Harry couldn't help but feel happy. Remus smiled back and they moved down the alley together as they headed to a shop off to the side near Gringotts. Heading inside, Remus levitated the trunk of extra presents onto the counter as the proprietor walked out to see who was in her shop.

"Ah, Remus and Harry Potter. How wonderful to see you again. More gifts to return?" the witch murmured as she studied the two standing before her. 

"Why yes, Madam Casner," Remus answered with a wry grin. "Not quite as many as last time, but enough to warrant the trip."

"Well, let us see what we have here," Madam Casner said. 

Madam Casner opened the trunk and carefully began taking each item out and logging its description and estimated cost as Remus and Harry watched her. She was an older witch with gray hairs inching their way through her light brown hair. Bifocal lenses hung forgotten around her neck and she had to squint at the list she was writing. 

"Goodness, you have eight Nimbus 2000 brooms here!" she exclaimed.

"Yes." Harry piped up. "And I still have two more at home that I can keep!"

"Well I declare; that is a lot of new brooms." 

Harry beamed at the witch as she finished totaling up the gifts while uncle Remus wearily paced the shop pretending to look at some items around the store. 

"Alright then Remus, come see if this will do," Madam Casner called as she took the last item from the trunk.

Remus walked over and studied the list of prices for all the items and then glanced at the actual items and then back at the list once more. Satisfied he signed the bottom of the order and handed it back to Madam Casner. 

"That should be fine. I have one more golden cauldron, but I will drop that by after we go to Gringotts."

"That's fine dear. Let me get you your money so you can be on your way." 

Heading into the back Madam Casner disappeared behind a beaded curtain and could be heard counting coins into a bag. After several minutes, during which Harry had searched every corner of the store looking for something to buy, Madam Casner clicked back through the beaded curtain and handed the bag of money to Remus. 

"There you go dears."

"Thank you, Madam," Remus replied softly. 

"Thank you!" Harry called back as he followed his uncle through the door. 

Madam Casner watched as the two made their way to the bank and disappeared through the door. 

"Poor boy, no parents, every time I see him I see his father James Potter. And that Lily was so sweet. Of course, Remus tries to raise him right. The pair of them would have been better off without that _woman_ though," Shaking her head Madam Casner set about putting the new merchandise away.

"Everyone seems to be noticing that Monica is not the perfect woman for you, Remus," Lori said pointedly as she paused and looked up right at him.

"She would never have been my first choice for a bride," Remus muttered.

Lori watched him for several minutes before continuing with the book.

* * *

"Are you certain they are both missing?" Dumbledore questioned wearily.

"Yes. I asked everyone in the dorms and neither one of them had gone up to bed," McGonagall answered tightly.

"We will search the castle once more, wake the other teachers, if we can not find any clue as to where they went we will have to assume the worst and inform their parents."

"Their parents are dead, Dumbledore," McGonagall whispered softly.

At this Dumbledore sank into a chair.

"We must find them quickly, Minerva," Dumbledore whispered as he stared around at his office without seeing anything.

McGonagall hurried from the room and rushed to wake the other staff.

_

* * *

Meanwhile the cloistered students continued to read of the future._

Remus and Harry stepped up to the counter and waited for the goblin to acknowledge them. Once they had informed the goblin of their wish to make a deposit he turned and motioned a second goblin to guide them to Harry's vault below. 

Passing through the doors that led to the vaults Harry was full of excitement as he thought of the ride he would be taking on the carts. This was his favorite part of coming to Gringotts, the thrilling rush as the cart twisted and turned on the small tracks, the feel of the wind grabbing at his hair as door after door sped by on their way down to his very own vault. 

In no time at all he was climbing out to stand next to his uncle who was unlocking the door to his vault. The goblin waited patiently to the side as Remus set the bag he had received from Madam Casner on top of a pile of similar bags in one corner. Harry hauled the golden cauldron of birthday money towards the back and began pulling out coins, pocketing several handfuls of gold and silver before he finally emptied the cauldron and moved back towards his uncle. 

"How much did you set aside Harry?" Remus asked as he noticed Harry's bulging pockets. 

"I kept about fifty Galleons and twenty-five Sickles," Harry answered as he handed the empty cauldron to his uncle. 

"Good thinking, that should be more then enough to get what few supplies you still need," Remus answered as they both exited the vault and climbed back into the cart.

After a second thrilling ride up to the surface, Harry and his uncle stepped out into the bright light of Diagon Alley. Heading towards Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions Harry felt happier then he had when he was opening his presents. They two of them walked in side by side and Remus wearily sat down near the door while Harry approached Madam Malkin, who was currently gathering up discarded garments and rehanging them on the various racks around the store. 

"What can I help you with dear?" she asked when she caught sight of Harry hovering out of the corner of her eye. 

"I need to be fitted for a set of Hogwarts robes," Harry replied respectfully with a trace of pride in his voice. 

"Right this way child, we've a fellow classmate in the back getting his as well." 

Harry followed the owner into the back and climbed up onto a stool next to a pale skinny boy with a pinched face and slicked back blond hair. 

"You must be going to Hogwarts too," said the boy arrogantly. 

"Naturally," Harry agreed confidently. 

"My parents are out buying the rest of my school supplies and once I am finished here I am going to talk my father into buying me a racing broom. I think it's a crime that first years aren't allowed to take a broom. What about you?"

"I already have my books, I just need a few more things and I will be all set. I have two brooms already, I won't be taking them, but I can go home on the holidays to ride them," Harry murmured politely with more than a small amount of pride. 

"So you play Quidditch do you?" 

"Yes, I love playing. What about you?" Harry asked in return. 

"Of course, I'm sure to be placed on the house team. My father will have a fit if I'm not chosen right away. I'm that good. Do you know your house?" 

"No, but I imagine that it would be Gryffindor like my parents," said Harry indifferently.

"Gryffindor, really? Better then Hufflepuff I suppose. All of our family has been in Slytherin, so I'm sure that's where I'll be as well. What did you say your name was?" 

Before Harry could answer, Remus called him over so that they could pay for his new robes and finish their school shopping.

"See you around," said the drawling boy as Harry hurried off with his uncle. 

From Madam Malkin's, they went to get Harry a pewter cauldron, brass weights, and a few odds and ends from the potion supply store as well as a supply of parchments from Flourish and Blotts. Next Remus took Harry to pick out a pet; Harry decided that he wanted an owl. Twenty minutes later, they left Eeylops Owl Emporium, which had been dark and full of rustling and flickering, jewel-bright eyes. Harry now carried a large cage which held a beautiful snowy owl, fast asleep with her head under her wing.

"Well now, the only thing left on your list is a wand," Remus announced as he steered Harry back in the direction of the Leaky Cauldron.

Harry was nearly bouncing off the walls at the prospect of getting his first wand. All his life he'd eagerly watched as his aunt and uncle performed various chores around the house with their own wands. The thought of being able to make magic of his own was pure heaven and each step now brought him closer to just that. 

Ollivander's was the last shop before the Leaky Cauldron alley and cobwebs filled the windows. On display at the front window was an old wand nestled on a cushion with faded fabric. The sign hanging over the door claimed that the shop had been in business since 382 BC.

Stepping inside, Remus sat down on a rickety old chair while Harry walked up to a dust covered desk where several open wand boxes lay scattered about. While they waited for the proprietor Harry gazed around at the huge piles of carefully stacked wands and wondered which one he would be getting. 

"Ah, good morning, Mr. Potter," An old man called as he stepped out from between two of the larger stacks of wands. "Oh, you look so much like your father, though you do have your mother's eyes. Such a talented witch and wizard they were. I remember them both very well, and the wands that chose them."

"Thank you, sir," Harry mumbled uncertainly, he'd always felt uncomfortable when his parents were brought up. He missed them both so much and constantly wondered what it might have been like if they had lived. 

Mr. Ollivander sighed as he pulled out a long measuring tape from his pocket. "Well, now - Which is your wand arm?" 

"My right," said Harry confidently.

Mr. Ollivander then proceeded to measure Harry's arm while he explained some of the characteristics of the wands that were made in the shop. When he finished, the small man went rushing off down the isles between stacks and began pulling down wands in a seemingly random order. 

One by one, Harry tried wand after wand only to be told that each one was unsuitable for him. Remus murmured soft encouragements as the pile grew larger by the minute. It wasn't until an eleven inch holly and phoenix feather wand was placed into his hand that anything extraordinary happened. With a warm rush a stream of colored sparks shot out of its tip and painted the walls with gold and red light. Remus clapped and patted Harry on the back as Mr. Ollivander bowed elegantly to the young boy.

Happily, Harry watched as his new wand was placed tenderly back into its box and wrapped securely with brown paper as Remus counted out cost. Lovingly Harry reached out for the package as soon as the money had changed hands and felt a wave of excitement flood through him as he realized that he now owned his very own wand.

Finished with their shopping, Uncle Remus took Harry to have an ice cream cone as they waited to see if Monica would show up before they left for home. Harry was just finishing his when Remus stood up and announced that they should be getting back to the house. Heading back into the Leaky Cauldron they stepped up to the fireplace and tossed in a pinch of Floo powder and stepped into the flames holding Harry's school packages as they called out, "Forest Glen Cottage".

This time Harry didn't notice the queasy feeling as they spun home, he was too disappointed that his aunt had not followed them while they did his school shopping. In no time at all they were stepping out into the deserted house and hauling the new packages upstairs to pack them with his other school stuff in his trunk. 

By the time Harry had made his way back downstairs there was still no sign of his aunt.

"Well, that's the end of chapter two. Shall I read more or should we stop here for the night?" Lori asked.

"Mr. Ollivander was weird like that when I got my wand," James said curiously. "How does he remember every wand he ever sold? I wonder if that happened in the other book... The Sorcerer's Stone one... We didn't get that far sadly enough."

"Not just Mr. Ollivander, it's all of the wizarding population in the future. How must Harry feel when his name is on the lips of every witch, wizard, hag, warlock, vampire, werewolf, and squib out there? I imagine even as far away as New Zealand and the United States," Sirius added thoughtfully.

"No wonder his head is so puffed up he can't see who he was meant to be," Remus said sadly. "It's not just Monica in the future; it's the whole wizarding community. This is exactly what Dumbledore had hoped to prevent in the first book. I wonder why Dumbledore hasn't shown up in this book yet."

"Who knows, he could be anywhere. Dumbledore is more then he appears, and he is one of the most powerful wizards of our time. Maybe he works for the ministry in the future," Lori interjected.

"But Dumbledore would never willingly leave Hogwarts. Would he?" Jenn asked in concern.

Everyone sat silently for several minutes as they thought of the impossible; a Hogwarts without Dumbledore.

"Why don't we get some sleep?" Lily interjected. "I for one am extremely tired and it's been a long day… a long week to tell you the truth."

"Maybe you're right. We should rest."

Lori marked the page and set the book on the bricks of the fireplace. Standing up they moved the chairs back out of the way and laid out six separate beds in a circle on the rug with their pillows all close together so they could talk for a bit. In no time at all Sirius, Jenn, Remus and Lori were sound asleep while Lily slept only fitfully. James watched her as she tossed and turned wondering what horrors haunted her dreams. Sometime later James drifted off to sleep.


	6. Living Nightmares

**DISCLAIMER:** _ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 6: Living Nightmares**

Dumbledore ordered all of the portraits to scour the castle for the two missing children and then quickly headed downstairs a second time to help in the search. Every secret passage way was checked for recent traffic, as well as all the ordinary ways in and out of the castle. In the back of his mind he constantly worried about what McGonagall had said about finding the main entrance door open.

Twice he ran into Filch who kept muttering dire pronouncements and swearing that someone had attacked him. Dumbledore was certain it was a student who jinxed his door, but didn't inform Filch of this in case he started handing out detentions to every student that passed him in the halls for the next month.

After an hour of fruitless searching Dumbledore was heading back to his office when he heard screaming coming from the third floor. The color drained from his face as he recognized the voice as Lily Evans. Rushing towards the Room of Requirement he prayed that he would not be too late.

He met McGonagall on the stairs and together they hurried faster.

* * *

_While Lily dreamed on…_

She was walking the halls of her house, calling for her parents and her sister. No one answered, but she knew someone was in the house with her because from upstairs she could hear soft footsteps pacing back and forth. Moving up the stairs Lily called out again for her sister, the footsteps stopped but there was still no answer. When she reached the top Lily called out a third time and turned towards her sister's room. There was a faint green light coming from under her door.

Lily pushed the door open to her sister's room and saw her sister's back facing her from the window. Moving into the room, Lily reached out to grab her sister's shoulder. Petunia shrugged off Lily's hand and spoke.

"It's all your fault. None of this would have happened if you weren't a freak," Petunia's voice sounded cracked and wispy, as if she had been screaming for hours.

"What do you mean?" Lily's dream self demanded.

"This!" Petunia stormed as she turned to face Lily.

Lily screamed as she saw the ruined remains of her sister's face before her. Lily tried to run, but she seemed to be frozen to the spot as her sister melted before her eyes and another figure formed.

"Why child, didn't you enjoy seeing your sister again?" Voldemort asked with a menacing chuckle. He reached out a hand and grasped Lily's face turning her so she could see her sister's body sitting against the wall in the kitchen once more. "She screamed her hate of you with her very last breath, Lily dear. I made sure she knew it was your fault that I was visiting her and that you were the reason your parents had to die."

Lily struggled to break his hold on her face, but something was holding her tight. She wanted to yell and scream at him, wanted to hurt him, she hated him.

Voldemort grinned maliciously at her feeble attempts to fight him. "I grow weary of repeating myself, _girl_. I want that book!" At this he waved his wand off to her side and a sudden light illuminated a struggling figure in a dark hole.

"You will have exactly twenty-four hours to bring me that book or your little friend will suffer the same fate as your dear sister. And so you know how much your sister suffered, I will leave you with this thought," So saying he waved his wand a second time and a living Petunia was lying on the ground in front of her surrounded by Death Eaters. Petunia's voice rose to a deafening pitch as she screamed in pain while two death eaters skinned her alive, inch by inch, with magic.

Lily screamed as Voldemort laughed…

* * *

"Lily! Lily! Wake up!" James cried as he shook her.

Jenn was watching white faced - her eyes wide open in a panic as she clutched her wand. Lily continued to scream and babble a constant stream of incomprehensible nonsense. Lori crawled over and slapped her hard.

_SLAP_

"Lily! Lily, stop it!"

Lily was still screaming as the door to the Room of Requirement burst open and a disheveled Dumbledore and McGonagall rushed in with wands at the ready, searching for an intruder. When they found nothing but the six students, they lowered their wands and hurried over to help with Lily who; though awake, was still screaming.

"Stupefy," McGonagall murmured as she stunned Lily. The immediate silence rang in everyone's ears.

"What happened?" Dumbledore demanded to know.

"We don't know, sir," James answered. "We were all sleeping when we woke up to Lily's screams." The others nodded silently, confirming James answer. Dumbledore frowned as he studied Lily where she lay stunned next to James.

"I suppose, we will have to wake her up to find out," Dumbledore said wearily. "Enervate"

Lily sat up and let out a half scream as she registered her surroundings. Wide eyed she looked at Dumbledore and then at McGonagall. She turned to each of the others in the room as if searching for someone before she faced Dumbledore once more.

"S-s-she's g-gone. Isn't she?" Lily stuttered fearfully.

Dumbledore's face drained of all color at Lily's question.

"How did you know?" Dumbledore asked.

Lily buried her face in her hands as her body was wracked with silent sobs.

"Who's gone?" Jenn inquired urgently.

"Monica. He took her," Lily stated as she looked up.

Her eyes were dry; she had no more tears to cry. After everything and everyone lost since school started, Lily had run out of tears to shed. Instead her eyes began to fill with a burning anger at her complete helplessness.

"When?" She asked in a cold choked voice.

"We discovered her missing less than an hour ago. We had hoped she was in here with you. We can not find Mr. Pettigrew either," McGonagall stated gently. James and Sirius exchanged a significant glance at this info. Lily jumped to her feet and reached down to grab her wand and headed straight for the door.

"Lily! Wait!" James cried as he struggled up and searched for his wand.

"Lily, stop," Dumbledore commanded softly.

Lily turned back and paused only slightly before she was out the door and moving quickly in the direction of the front door. James, dismayed, finally had a hold of his wand and checked to be sure he had the map before charging out after her.

"James, NO!" Dumbledore tried to stop him as well.

James didn't even pause to look back as Lily had; he was out the door and racing to catch up with her before she left the castle. Jenn, Sirius, Remus and Lori had wands in hand and were walking fast towards the door, when Jenn turned to Dumbledore.

"We can't let them go alone, Lily knows something and she's not been herself since she found her sister," Jenn then pushed the others ahead of her and they dashed down the hall in search of Lily and James.

McGonagall turned frantically to Dumbledore. "What are we going to do?"

"We must go after them. Alert the other teachers and I will try to catch up with them," Dumbledore replied as he sprang into action.

* * *

Lily burst into the entrance hall and slipped slightly on the smooth floor. As soon as she regained her balance she sprinted up to the door and yanked it open, she was just stepping outside when James grabbed her arm.

"Slow down! We can't just go rushing around. Do you even know where you are going?"

"Yes, to save my friend!" Lily retorted as she tried to jerk her arm from James hand.

"Then why don't you let us help?" James demanded as he turned her to face him. Holding her with both arms he shook her a bit. "Don't you think we want to help too!"

"_He's going to kill her!_" Lily raged as she continued to try and break his grasp. "Just like Petunia. The _same_ way!"

James froze and looked into Lily's angry eyes as he hissed out, "I will go with you. I am I_not_/I letting you get yourself killed. I love you too much to let you sacrifice yourself needlessly."

They were just stepping down onto the stairs that led into the castle when the others caught up to them. Without saying a word they fell into step behind Lily and James and the six of them began trotting resolutely towards Hogsmeade.

"Where?" Jenn asked shortly.

"Same place," Lily barked.

"Where we found you?" Sirius questioned.

"Yes."

"Transform," James instructed as he pulled Lily to a stop.

"What? We can't, we're not ready!" Lily cried.

"Do it. Transform," James ordered. "Now, we can get there faster running on four legs as opposed to two. Think about it, Lily, deer were made for running through the forest."

Lily frowned, but began the wand motions and chant to transform.

_POP_

Lily the Doe was standing next to James, looking off towards the woods where she herself had been held captive by Voldemort.

"Lily, you must follow me. No matter what; do as I do!" James commanded as he gently pulled her face around so she was looking at him.

Lily stomped her foot in impatience but nodded that she understood. James waited as the others transformed too, all but Remus, who needed the light of a full moon. When they were all in Animagus form James took the lead and began bounding towards the clearing where they had found Lily not that long ago. Lily matched him step for step as they closed in on the forest edge. Sirius the dog, Jenn the horse, and Lori the songbird were fairly close behind if not quite as fast as the two fleet footed deer.

As James passed under the first tree, he slowed to a stop and began to walk silently under the trees. Weaving in and out of the shadows he crept closer to the clearing until they could hear voices. Stepping in front of Lily he gave her a warning with his eyes for caution and then circled around so they could get a good look.

Sure enough, Monica was lying on the ground in the middle of several Death Eaters. James the stag pushed Lily back to where Sirius, Jenn, and Lori hovered as the other three finally caught up. Remus was no where to be seen, his pace far slower then those in their animagus forms. Moving out of hearing range from the Death Eaters, James transformed back to himself and the others copied him. They were just beginning to plan their attack when Remus and Dumbledore reached them.

"Alright, we know she's here. There are anywhere from fifteen to twenty Death Eaters surrounding her. I didn't see Voldemort, but there is a chance he's close by," James whispered.

"We can't let them hurt her!" Lily exclaimed softly.

"We will do what we can," Dumbledore quietly insisted. "Professor McGonagall is alerting the other teachers and will set up a defense at the castle in addition to calling the Ministry for reinforcements."

Lily nodded absently as she stared off in the direction of the clearing where Monica was laying.

"I think we need to split into two groups. One coming in from the south and the second coming in from the east, that will keep us from getting caught in the cross fire," James planned as he drew on the ground with a stick. "Monica is being held in the very center of the clearing, the Death Eaters circled evenly around her. They are facing her, not the forest."

"Why are they not watching the forest?" Jenn asked worriedly.

"It could be a trap," Remus answered softly.

"I know it is a trap," Lily whispered furiously.

"How?" Dumbledore demanded.

"He wants the book. He entered my dreams again," Lily replied.

The other students tensed at this, but Dumbledore seemed to be considering. Waving his wand he muttered a small spell and conjured a blank book from the air.

"What's the title of the book?" Dumbledore asked as he looked at Lily.

"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," James answered quickly before Lily could reply.

Sirius opened his mouth to correct him, but Jenn kicked him quickly in the shin before he could say anything. Sirius turned to glare at her as Dumbledore charmed the title of the book onto his conjured one. When he finished he handed the book to Lily and then motioned the others to gather closer.

"Lily will take the decoy book out to the Death Eaters. The rest of us will sneak in from two sides as James suggested. Have several charms ready to use. It's a shame you didn't bring your cloak James, we could have used all the help we can get."

"Would disillusionment charms work as well?" Jenn asked softly.

"Yes, they would help, even though they are not as effective," Dumbledore replied.

Nodding, Jenn tapped Sirius over his head and he shivered as if cold water had been poured over him. Looking down, Sirius noticed that he looked like a tree had been painted on him. Jenn went on to tap James, Lori, Remus and finally herself.

"Good, now James will follow behind Lily to watch her back. Sirius and Jenn, you circle round to the south and sneak close enough to watch the clearing without being seen or heard. Wait for Lily to present the book before you attack. Remus and Lori can do the same from the east. I will look for Voldemort," Dumbledore modified with authority.

Nodding, everyone moved away and went to move into position. Lily waited for ten minutes before she walked intently towards to clearing, with James shadowing her. When she was no more then six feet away from edge of the clearing, a scream ripped through the night. Lily panicked at the sound and tried to bolt forward, but was checked by James quickly grabbing her arm and whispering furiously to her to wait and let the others get into position.

Lily tried to fight the urge to rush in as a second scream rent the air. Taking a deep breath she took a single step forward when a voice hissed out from the trees behind her and James.

"Well, this is a pleasant surprise," Voldemort laughed. "Both Potter and Evans with the book."

James swore and tried to raise his wand when Voldemort whisked both his and Lily's wands away with a flick of his own wand. A second flick lifted the disillusionment charm on James.

"Tsk, tsk. That is no way to behave when you have been invited to a celebration on your behalf," Voldemort chided in a falsely cheerful voice as a third scream rang out from the clearing. "I had so hoped you would come in time to witness the entertainment."

So saying, Voldemort waved his wand to indicate that Lily and James should enter the clearing.

Lily turned and walked forward once more as James reached out to hold her hand in an effort to reassure her. Stepping into the clearing a ring of torches suddenly flared up and illuminated the terrible scene before them. Monica was staked out in the middle of the clearing and the Death Eaters were walking around her in a circle. As they stumbled to a stop, James and Lily saw one Death Eater lower his wand and hiss a spell as it brushed Monica's leg. Monica screamed as the spell sliced a thin section of skin from the side of her calf, the blood welling up and overflowing into the ground beneath her. Three other such cuts could be seen on her arms and stomach.

"_Leave her alone!_" Lily screamed as she tried to rush in and stop them from continuing to torture her friend.

Voldemort just laughed and placed a magical barrier around Lily before she could reach Monica. James turned and tried to grab his wand from Voldemort's grasp, but was frozen as a Death Eater cursed him from behind. Another scream rent the air as yet another Death Eater carved off a slice of skin.

"_Stop it!_" Lily half begged and half screamed a second time. "I brought you the book! Please, just let her go." Lily threw the book at Voldemort as she said this forgetting that it was a fake.

"Let them go! You have what you wanted. Just let them go!" Lily begged as she watched yet another Death Eater strip a section of skin from Monica's thigh.

"Let them go? Why would I ever do such a thing as that?" Voldemort asked in wonder. "We have just started. I can not let your defiance go unpunished."

"Please, let them go!" Lily sobbed as Monica screamed out again. She closed her eyes and buried her face in her hands, completely helpless to stop them.

"Watch!" Voldemort demanded. "It is because of you that she suffers!" Voldemort strode up to Lily and grabbed a fistful of hair, forcing her to watch as Monica was skinned alive inch by inch.

"_You bastard!_" a voice rang out from the south as a curse lifted Voldemort's feet from the ground and flung him backwards.

Three more spells shot out into the night as Remus, Lori and Sirius fired spells after Jenn's first one had knocked Voldemort aside.

Lily scrambled over the ground and grabbed her wand from Voldemort's hand and struggled to take it from him. Complete pandemonium broke out as the Death Eaters turned from torturing the bleeding figure on the ground and moved to help their lord. Sirius charmed the cloak of one Death Eater and moved past him as the guys cloak flapped bat-like wings and carried him off into the sky. A second one went rushing by him spouting bubbles trying to curse Remus where the young werewolf fought with two more Death Eaters.

Lori transformed one Death Eater's cloak into a huge spider that began winding the screaming Death Eater into a thick web. Jenn came tearing into the clearing at this point and stepped hard on Voldemort's hand causing it to spasm and release both Lily and James's wands. Lily gasped a quick 'thanks' and broke away from Voldemort as she cried the counter spell to release James. She took a few seconds to toss him his wand as she joined their friends in fighting the Death Eaters.

Spells flew haphazardly back and forth in the clearing. Smoke hung low to the ground, masking roots and small holes that trapped the unwary as lights flickered through the air creating misleading shadows. The six of them were spread far too thin though and outnumbered more than three to one. Before too long, James was hit with a spell in the leg that sliced it open from thigh to calf while Jenn was hit with a hundred ice shards that sliced up her face and arms with razor sharp edges.

Sirius, seeing his girlfriend injured, caught Remus's attention and the two of them began clearing a path to James and Jenn's side to protect them from the Death Eaters that were closing in. Meanwhile, Lily jinxed two more Death Eaters with the bubble curse and James tied up another by transfiguring the branches of a nearby tree into living ropes as he sank to the ground in pain. At that moment, Dumbledore, five additional teachers, and several Aurors bounded into the clearing from the north and began firing curses at Voldemort and those Death Eaters still standing.

Now that the odds were a little more even, the Death Eaters turned to flee into the woods, but Jenn called forth Firedancer and a hundred other fiery horses from the flames of a fallen torch and sent the tiny ember beings charging along the edge of the clearing, creating a barrier of fire that stopped the Death Eater's flight. Exhausted and in pain, Jenn sank to the ground and wearily fired a few leg locker curses at the fleeing Death Eaters as she recovered from the cost of calling so many Ember Lives at once.

Voldemort snatched up the fake copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and vanished without a word as two spells collided in the air where he had stood. Those Death Eaters still conscious and unhindered, disapparated a heartbeat later in a series of pops as they followed their master. Only those who had tied up by various transfigurations or jinxed with the bubble curse remained (still spouting streams of bubbles) as they too tried to escape. Lily jinxed one last Death Eater with a full body bind before she rushed over to free Monica from her bonds. Lifting her into her arms in spite of the blood that still seeped from her many wounds, Lily called out her name.

"Monica. Monica! Please be alive. Please don't die."

"L-l-lily," Monica slurred out as she fought to open her eyes. "It… wassss… a-a-a tra-p-p."

Lori came over and knelt beside her, trying to heal the wounds that the Death Eaters inflicted on her, but none of the healing spells she had been taught worked. Lori looked desperately over at Lily and then looked to the teachers and Aurors who were trying to secure the captured Death Eaters.

"Hush it's ok, It's over now," Lily sobbed in relief at the sound of her voice.

"I… I… am s-s-sorr-y," Monica gasped out pitifully. "I t-t-old…"

"Don't… It's ok now, there are teachers here and they will help you," Lily whispered through her tears. "Can some one please help her!"

"M-m-my fault," Monica whispered. "I told Peter… book… s-so s-s-orry"

Lily gasped as Monica choked on her last words and stopped breathing.

"Monica! MONICA?" Lily screamed in desperation. "Don't die!"


	7. The Aftermath

**DISCLAIMER: **_ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 7: The Aftermath**

Dumbledore hurried over and tried to heal her as well, but too much blood had been lost in too short of a time and the curses they had used didn't respond to the healing spells he used any more then they had to the ones Lori had used moments before.

"Lily, I am sorry. I had hoped we would be in time." Dumbledore whispered painfully. "Let her go, there is nothing more we can do."

"She's not dead. She didn't die!" Lily began screaming as she held Monica's limp bloody body close to her. "_She is not dead!_ She was talking to me. Monica! Talk to me, please. Please talk. MONICA!"

Dumbledore stood sadly as he watched Lily cling to Monica's dead body.

James limped over, his leg bloody and torn where a Death Eater had caught him with a curse, and tried to take Lily in his arms. She pushed him away though and kept shaking Monica trying to get her to wake up. James had tears in his eyes as he kneeled down beside her and pried her hands from the lifeless body she clutched to her.

Dumbledore helped James pull Lily away as he conjured up a stretcher for Monica's body to be placed on, pulling a sheet up to hide her from view.

Lily continued to struggle in James arms as he rocked her gently back and forth murmuring softly to her as he wept with her. After several minutes her flailing arms slowed and her screams faded into muted sobs while James kept up a steady stream of whispered nonsense in an effort to comfort her.

Jenn sat numbly on the edge of the trees watching the fire dancing along the branches as tears tracked unnoticed down her cheeks. Firedancer trotted nervously near her hand as the ember horse waited to be commanded or released. As the fire raged hotter, Jenn continued to ignore the flames that began licking at the grass and dead leaves that were spread around her on the ground. Seemingly mesmerized by the flickering and dancing flames in front of her, sizzling and inching closer as she lost herself in the fire. She never noticed when her cloak caught fire on the edge.

Professor Sprout was rushing along the clearings edge trying to control the flames and keep them from spreading when she noticed a figure become engulfed in the fire. Acting quickly as possible Professor Sprout dashed over and froze the flames and reached in to pull the body out of harms way when she looked down and recognized who it was.

"Albus!" Professor Sprout cried loudly as she smothered the flames that had clung to Jenn with a small stream of conjured water.

Dumbledore rushed over and blanched when he saw how badly Jenn had been burned by the fire, a small gasp escaping his lips when he noticed she was still breathing. Carefully he cast a quick numbing spell over her to dull any pain she felt before placing her under a stasis spell to halt the damage the fire had done to her body before conjuring a second stretcher and levitating her carefully onto it.

"She's still alive Professor. Take her up to the castle quickly," Dumbledore reassured and commanded at the same time.

As Professor Sprout whisked Jenn past a startled Sirius he gave out a wounded growl and rushed after the quickly disappearing teacher without looking back. Remus watched Sirius running after Professor Sprout and then walked slowly over to Lori and dropped his hand to her shoulder gently.

"Are you okay, Lori?"

Lori just shook her head and shrugged her shoulders as she stared from James holding Lily to Monica's sheet covered body lying stiffly on a stretcher nearby.

"I couldn't help her," She choked out finally.

"You tried. You, Lily, and Jenn did what you could to save her," Remus said gently as he pulled Lori to her feet and turned her face to his. "It's not your fault, nor is it Jenn's or Lily's. If you want to blame someone, then blame the person responsible for her death. Voldemort was behind this. Behind everything that has happened since he first became power hungry. Promise me you will never blame yourself."

Lori looked up at Remus as searched his face intently as she slowly nodded in understanding. Trembling she let Remus pull her into a tender hug as she cried softly for her lost friend.

Dumbledore stood silently watching James, Lily, Remus, and Lori as Aurors portkeyed the Death Eaters out of the clearing, presumably taking them to the Ministry holding cells for questioning. All told, they had managed to capture six of the fifteen who had been present. Feeling weak and old Dumbledore finally turned to search the clearing before he approached the four students.

"Come, it will be safer up at the castle."

"Safer? SAFER!" Lily screamed irrationally in anger and grief. "How in the hell can it be safer up there! He's already crossed the threshold twice! What's to stop him from doing it again?"

Dumbledore bowed his head for he had no answers for her.

Lily glared at Dumbledore for several minutes before she turned and pulled herself from James's hold. Stumbling slightly she stood and walked slowly but determinedly away from the clearing and away from Hogwarts. James hesitated momentarily before he quietly followed her off into the forest.

Remus and Lori stood shocked at Lily's outburst, after several moments they turned and followed Dumbledore silently back to the castle.

* * *

Jenn struggled to make sense of the images that the fire had shown her in the forest. Drifting slowly through a deep haze she saw shadows passing through the woods, watched a rat like shape scurry through the castle, heard a wretched scream full of agony, and saw flash after flash of green light. In her dazed like state she knew these things meant something, but she couldn't quite grasp why they were so important. As she struggled to understand them, her vision faded to black.

From the depths of the fog she could hear a wailing howl echoing in the distance.

* * *

Sirius paced up and down beside the bed where they had laid Jenn the moment Professor Sprout had rushed her through the door. Madam Pomfrey had tried several times to shoo him out, but he refused to be shooed. After several ignored attempts, Madam Pomfrey had given up and just ignored his fretful pacing as she worked to heal the burns and abrasions on the student before her.

On the far side of the hospital, in a cold fireplace a piece of coal flared briefly before banking itself into a dull red glow.

* * *

Dumbledore closed the door quietly behind him as he stepped inside his office and looked around. Everything he had collected and gathered in his long life was here at Hogwarts. This was the only place he'd ever felt he belonged. Home. Hogwarts was his home, and he had once believed that it would be until the day he drew his last breath.

He had been certain he could protect the students while they were here. Oh sure, there had been those who had doubted that Voldemort would leave Hogwarts alone. And yet he had done just that for almost eight years. What had changed that the Dark Lord could feel confident enough to attack several students right on Hogwarts' grounds? Was it confidence or desperation? What was in the book Lily claimed he had wanted from her? Too many questions and Dumbledore didn't have any of the answers.

Closing his eyes he felt his knees give way and he slid down the door only to collapse onto the floor. A rushing sound filled his ears and the room began to spin and sway, every breath was a struggle and at the same moment his heart seemed to stop beating.

In the silence the mournful cry of a songbird echoed.

* * *

Remus sat silently in a chair near the fireplace as he stared at the book sitting on the edge. Lori sat nearby silently as they waited for their friends to join them here in the Room of Requirement. They had come up here because they knew no place else to go. They were not yet aware that Sirius paced near frantically beside a badly burned and unconscious Jenn in the hospital and they could only wonder where Lily and James had ended up when she'd turned her back on Dumbledore and he had followed.

Regardless of what she had promised Remus, Lori knew that it was her fault that Monica had died. There was a healing spell out there she could have learned, but more importantly Lori had wished her harm from the moment she'd heard that Remus had married her in the future. She'd never truly wanted her to be harmed, and certainly not to be murdered in such a brutal fashion, but she'd wanted to jinx and hex her until she'd sworn to keep away from Remus.

On the table behind them a feather raised itself and began to dance gracefully across a piece of parchment.

* * *

James hurried through the woods as he was followed the soft footfalls of Lily as she rushed away from everything that had happened tonight. He feared for her safety should Voldemort discover the fake book they'd left for him. He feared that in her pain she would do something she would regret later, or worse that he would regret for the rest of his life.

His legged throbbed painfully now and he was certain that an infection had already set it. He had no idea what spell had caused the wound; he just knew he couldn't let it stop him from being by Lily's side if they ran into trouble. Thankfully Lily wasn't running because James knew there was no way he could keep up with her if she was.

* * *

Lily walked as fast as she could without running; she wanted to get away from that clearing quickly but didn't have the strength to run headlong into the forest. In her anger she wanted to get as far away from Dumbledore and Hogwarts as she could. She blamed Dumbledore for not protecting Hogwarts. She blamed herself for not bringing Monica with them when they moved to the Room of Requirement and for not arriving in time to prevent her torture and murder.

She could hear footsteps following her and though she had an idea of who might be following her, she didn't want to slow down only to find out that she was wrong. Alone with her grief she charged onward, further away from everything she had once held dear.

In the trees above the two moving figures a shadowy figure watched them with unblinking eyes.

* * *

Voldemort laughed as he appeared inside the house his father had once called home. In his hand he clutched a book. Making his way upstairs to where a fire burned brightly he ran his fingers over the ornate cover of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone that Lily had foolishly dropped in the first few moments after he'd found her. From the moment Wormtail had described the book and what he had heard whispered about what was in it, Voldemort knew he had to have it. He had feared Wormtail would fail him in this and the first three attempts had indeed turned out badly, but last night he had redeemed himself by luring that girl to him.

Turning his attention back to the book in his hand, Voldemort slid one hand across the cover. Funny, it should have had a tattered old cover. Flipping the book over, he frowned at the blank back cover. Didn't Wormtail say that there had been a description of the book on the back? As he began opening the book it shuddered and before his eyes it began to dissolve.

Voldemort roared his rage at being tricked; she had defied him yet again. Three times she had defied him now, he had tried to reason with her, he had commanded her, and he had thought to force her. She would have to be dealt with now. As would her knight in shining armor, Potter, he always turned up when Voldemort laid traps for Evans. Seething he summoned all of his remaining Death Eaters to join him, sitting down he stared angrily into the fire as he considered the best way to remove Evans and Potter from his way.

They would pay. _She would pay._

* * *

Shadows played across Lori's face as she sat rocking herself in the chair. She had no idea how long she had been sitting there, for her there was no time. Nothing mattered any longer… Her parents are dead… Her best friends were being hunted, tortured, and murdered… She had been unable to heal when it was needed most.

Someone shifted nearby. Looking up Lori saw Remus stand and walk towards the bathrooms. As he passed the table that was sitting behind the chair he had been using, he looked down and stopped. He picked up a piece of paper and Lori watched as the color drained from his face.

"What is it Remus?" she asked nervously.

"He knows."

"Who knows what?"

"Voldemort," Remus whispered as he looked up, "he knows the book was a fake."

"So soon? But how?"

"All he had to do was open the book. There was nothing written inside and it wasn't made in the normal way. It was conjured which means it would have dissolved after a while," Remus explained as he covered his face with one hand, still holding the parchment with the other. "He's targeted Lily next. Where are the others? We have to let them know!"

Lori jumped up and pulled at the paper so she could read it.

The words written on it shimmered in the light of the room and appeared to be written in blood.

_**You have defied me for the last time… Lily Evans…**_

"Oh no!" Lori gasped as the blood drained from her face. "Lily took off in a fit. James went after her! I don't know where Sirius and Jenn are. He could have captured any one of them or all of them if they were outside of the castle!"

"Alright, let's calm down, we need to think rationally," Remus cried desperately. "James will be with Lily, they can keep each other out of trouble. So can Jenn and Sirius for that matter. If all four are together, then they will be safe. We just have to find them."

"Do you have the map?" Lori asked hopefully.

"No," Remus answered sadly. "James had it."

"Oh. Let's go find Dumbledore!" Lori exclaimed hurriedly. "He will be able to help!"

"You're right," Remus stated as he dropped the paper back to the table and headed to the door. "Let's hurry and let him know what happened. Together they rushed out the door and let it fall closed behind them.

Neither one of them noticed that the door failed to latch in their rush.

* * *

It seemed like she had been drudging through the forest for days, though Lily knew it could only have been an hour or two at the most. The eerie silence was starting to grate on her nerves and the injuries she had sustained during the battle were beginning to ache terribly. Every so often she would stumble now, trees and bushes seemed to grab at her feet with every step, and whoever was following her was catching up.

Lily stumbled again and this time fell to her knees, too tired to get up and too depressed to care anymore. Numb and in shock she closed her eyes and lay still as the footsteps crunched closer. Ever so slowly she drifted away from the horrible events of the night and let her body succumb to the shock. Her world went gray then black as the footsteps stopped and someone kneeled beside her.

She felt hands lift her from the ground and then… she felt nothing.

* * *

**AN:** _I apologize for the lateness of the update, but I was exceedingly sick for a week and working on a project for a client that was taking up all my time. Then, both of my girls got sick and I had to hound them into taking their meds and taking care of themselves. Bloody stubborn twerps. ANYwho... This chapter is up now - highly edited with one significant change for those who read the original posting on HPFF. The next two chapters are in the queue - meaning I've uploaded them, but haven't checked the formatting and coding on them - and I should have at least one of them posted before the end of the month or at least during the first week of the next month. _

_Thank you again, to all of those who have left reviews. As always, your patients with my sporadic updates on this fic are appreciated. - Jenn_


	8. Wounded Souls

**DISCLAIMER:** _ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 8: Wounded Souls**

The door to the Ministry's Interrogation room crashed open as four Aurors barged into the room dragging the six Death Eaters that had been captured on Hogwarts' grounds. Sitting at the table was a middle aged man dressed in the blood red robes of the Aurors wearing a black sash around his shoulders that indicated he was the Head Auror. The six prisoners were roughly dumped into the various chairs spread around the table opposite of the grizzled Auror and secured with magically enhanced ropes that suppressed the Death Eaters' magical abilities to prevent them from escaping.

Alastor Moody, known to many as Mad-Eye-Moody because of a magical eye that he used to replace the eye he had lost in a incident three years earlier, growled under his breath as the on-duty Aurors that had been dispatched to deal with the plea for help from the school stood at attention behind their prisoners. Scratching his nose, he turned to face the dark wizards sitting tied before him.

"I trust these psychotic criminals no longer have wands in their possession," Moody stated with dripping sarcasm as his magical eye searched each Death Eater in turn. "And that any concealed portkeys have been removed?"

"Yes, sir," Amelia Bones, Alastor's second in command, succinctly stated as she set a box on the table that contained eight wands, twelve portkeys, and several other personal items that had been removed from the prisoners before they had been transported to the Ministry.

Moody nodded and strode over to the six captives and began pulling off their masks revealing several familiar faces; Bellatrix Black, Rabastan and Rodolphus Lestrange, Antonin Dolohov, Aedan Nott*, and Walden McNair.

"Ah, Bellatrix Black and her betrothed, Rodolphus Lestrange; no surprise seeing the two of you, and young Rabastan involved with tonight's trouble," Moody rasped with a manic grin as he leered at the trio of recent graduates. "This time you three will not have any chance of slipping through the cracks like you have previously."

Bellatrix shouted something at Moody but he never heard what it was she called him, for all that came out was a string of large rainbow colored bubbles. There was a strangled choking sound as Kingsley Shacklebolt, a young cadet in training, smothered a laugh.

"Amazing," said another Auror, Emmeline Vance, a stately looking witch in an emerald green shawl.

The fourth Auror, who just whistled appreciatively, was a square-jawed wizard with thick, straw colored hair named Sturgis Podmore.

"Whose brilliant handy work is that?" Kingsley asked still laughing.

"According to Professor McGonagall, whom we interviewed immediately after the battle, Lily Evans," Auror Bones answered. "Her and her friends captured these six in an attempt to rescue another student along with three of the Marauders."

"The Marauders? You mean the Potter's boy and his buddies?" Moody asked.

"The very same ones."

"Sad business that. The Potters were good people and better Aurors are hard to find. It does this old soul good to hear their son is just as talented," Moody replied glumly. "You said attempted rescue? What happened?"

"Another student, a fifth or sixth year who was a known friend of the Evan's girl, was kidnapped out of the castle and held hostage in the forest," Auror Vance reported in a soft voice as she shot a glare at the six Death Eaters sitting in front of her. "Fifteen Death Eaters and You-Know-Who had… they'd…"

"They what?" Moody demanded as the young Auror trailed off in obvious discomfort.

"They skinned the girl alive, same as that muggleborn's sister that was found in Surry," Auror Podmore spat out when it became apparent that his young female colleague wasn't able to finish her report. "She died at the scene."

"It was horrible," Emmeline gasped as she shuddered and gagged at the memory.

"That's not the worst of it either. All six of the-would-be rescuers witnessed the murder."

"Well, we're not here to hold a Tea Party folks, let's flush these flobberworms free of any potions they may be on and get them doped up on Truth Serum so the questioning can begin," Moody ordered as he returned to his seat and set up a roll of parchment and a Dicta-quill.

The questioning actually progressed fairly easily, once the Death Eaters had been dosed. The only exception was Bellatrix, as the young female Death Eater was still only able to spew forth bubbles each time she attempted to answer a question. After attempting to cancel the spell, without any luck, Moody ordered all six prisoners to be locked in separate cells while he traveled to Hogwarts in search of the counter spell.

* * *

Butterflies, hundreds upon thousands of beautiful fluttering butterflies, drifted lazily around in circles. Such wondrous colors and so many different kinds; large yellow butterflies, small violet ones, bright red and black, soft green and gray each one as gorgeous as the next. Drifting close enough for her to touch and yet, evasive and elusive when she tried to catch them. Reaching out towards a particularly vivid blue and white butterfly, her hand brushed against something warm. She pulled her hand back quickly and searched the maelstrom of butterflies for something… or… _someone._

Suddenly fearful she watched as the butterflies began to explode into flames dozens at a time. Little puffs of ashes surrounding her covering her face and burying her beneath their weight. Frantically she struggled to get out as the brilliant colors faded first to grey and then to black. Desperately she tried to call out, begging to see the colors again. Needing to know where she was, and to remember who she was.

She had a name… _Didn't she?_  
She was somebody… _Wasn't she?_  
She didn't die… _Did she?_  
She wasn't alone… _Was she?_

No, not alone she felt _someone _near.  
Not dead, she could _feel_ pain.  
Being alive meant she was someone, but who was she?

Who am I?  
There! A name, drifting on the breeze… if only… there it is again…  
Tell me who I am!  
Please?

I need to know.  
I want to know.  
Who am I?

With her heart racing she fought the blackness around her, desperate to remember who she was.

My name is… is… Jenn… Yes, that is who I am… I am Jenn…

* * *

"Will she be okay?" Sirius asked desperately as he watched Jenn's breathing slowly return to normal.

"Time will tell, only time will tell, Mr. Black," Madam Pomfrey replied as she stood and wiped the sweat from her brow with a damp cloth. "She needs to rest and let nature take its course. Only then will we know."

Sirius sadly reached for Jenn's hand once more as he continued to watch over her. For two hours Madam Pomfrey had worked spells and mixed potions and poultices for Jenn's cuts and many burns. Through it all Jenn had struggled for her life, at times it seemed she would not make it. Twice Sirius had feared for her when first her breathing and then her heart had stopped. If not for Madam Pomfrey's constant vigilance Jenn would never have lived through the first hour, let alone the second.

Sitting and watching her now, Sirius felt completely helpless. He murmured softly to her, but she never seemed to hear what he was saying. As he held her hand he found himself wishing he had told her how he truly felt before all of this happened. Bowing his head he gently kissed the back of her hand and then held it to his cheek as a tear trickled down his face.

* * *

James struggled as he carried Lily back through the forest to the castle. She had been running, no walking away from everything almost all night. The sun would be rising in less than an hour and James feared that they had gotten lost while he followed her through the forest. His leg felt as though it was on fire, the wound he received in the battle throbbing with every step. Under normal circumstances he would have been able to carry Lily for hours, but the battle, his wound, and then a long trek through the forest chasing Lily had taken its toll on him.

Pausing to catch his breath, James leaned up against a tree and surveyed the forest before him. Unfortunately it looked very similar to the forest behind him and like that in either direction off to the sides.

Feeling completely disoriented and light headed, James slowly sank down to sit against the tree struggling to keep Lily from being dropped as he felt himself weaken. He tried to set her in his lap, but the shooting pain her slight weight sent up his leg was too much. He ended up setting her on the ground between his legs and leaning her against his chest. He wished he had his invisibility cloak at least then he wouldn't feel quite as exposed as he sat weakly holding Lily.

Fighting to keep his eyes open James continued to search the surrounding forest in an effort to figure out where they were.

"No luck," he muttered under his breath as he slowly drifted off into a fevered sleep.

* * *

Remus and Lori were standing outside of Dumbledore's office trying every password they could think of in an effort to get in and see professor Dumbledore.

"Lemon sherbet, lemon drop, taffy, chocolate, cockroach clusters, pepper imps, Bertie Bott's every flavor bean?" Remus muttered desperately.

"Candy corn, bubble gum, chocolate frog, twizzle sticks, licorice?" Lori tried.

They were still trying to get in when Mad Eye Moody briskly walked around the corner. He had watched them desperately calling out sweets trying to figure out what the new password was as he approached the gargoyle guarding the entrance from behind them. Moody knew who Remus was, had met him on several occasions at the Potter's ancestral home in Godric's Hollow, but he had no idea who the girl was with him.

"Here now! What are you two up to?"

Lori and Remus jumped at the sound of Moody's loud voice. Turning around abruptly, Remus had his wand half way up and a spell half muttered before he realized who had walked up behind the two of them. Lori was a touch faster, her adrenaline still running high from the recent battle and subsequent message from the Dark Lord; the moment she'd heard the unknown man call out, she'd quickly spelled the bubble shield around her and Remus.

Remus frowned at the shield briefly before turning to face Lori, "Release the shield. Moody won't hurt us. He's the Head Auror and a close friend of Dumbledore's."

"Oh," Lori said as she dropped the shield and blushed. "Sorry, sir."

Moody nodded as he studied the girl before him. She was quick and she had effortlessly called up one of the more powerful shields of protection. "I must congratulate you on your command of that shield," Moody announced as he walked closer.

Lori blushed deeper and mumbled out a thank you as Remus introduced them.

"Moody, I would like you to meet my friend Lori Wilson. Lori, this is Auror Alastor Moody."

"A pleasure to meet you Miss Wilson, I trust you both have a good reason for trying to break into the Headmaster's office?"

"We aren't trying to break in, Auror Moody," Remus replied as Lori frowned at Moody. "We are worried about our four other friends and we need Dumbledore's help."

"You are referring to James, Sirius, and Peter?" Moody asked.

"Well, yes, we're worried about Sirius and Jenn, but mostly Lily and James."

"Well, two of them are in the hospital wing. No, I don't know which ones yet. The others were supposed to have been with you."

Remus paled and leaned back against the wall, "It's got to be Sirius and Jenn in the hospital. James followed after Lily when… after… she yelled at Dumbledore. I didn't think they'd go that far… they should have been back by now."

"Sweet Tart," Moody called out to the gargoyle. "Come lets go see Dumbledore and then I can help you find your wayward friends." The giant statue of a gargoyle rotated and a staircase appeared and the three of them headed up to Dumbledore's office with Moody in the lead.

As they neared the top, Moody let his magical eye drift in the direction of the door.

"Why don't you…"

Moody never finished what he was going to say. He stopped abruptly as his magical eye swiveled around towards the door they were approaching caught sight of Dumbledore lying crumpled on the floor just inside his office.

* * *

Lily felt trapped, something was pulling at her – weighing her down – she couldn't breath and her legs were completely numb from whatever was laying across them. She opened her eyes and at first couldn't see much around her. As her eyes came into focus she noticed that she was still somewhere in the forest and that the gray light of morning was peeking through the leaves of the trees in a scattering of places.

Completely unsure of herself she pushed at the heaviness that pinned her down only to discover that it was a sleeping James holding her. Sagging in relief she tried to shake him awake.

"James? Wake up James!" Lily cried softly as she shook him harder. "Come on wake up!"

Growling softly in frustration Lily huffed and sat pinned under James for another moment. Frowning she looked again at his face. He had never been that deep of a sleeper had he? No, he'd always woken at the slightest touch and she even remembered Sirius joking about how the tiniest sound would make him jump up and reach for his wand.

Concerned now, Lily felt his forehead and thought it felt a tad bit warm. His face was drawn up tight as though he'd been in severe pain when he'd fallen asleep and it was whiter then normal. Carefully Lily pulled one hand and then the other from around her waist and turned so she could examine him for injuries. There was blood on his shirt so she pulled it up but found no cuts on his chest.

Blushing slightly, for she had never seen James shirtless before, Lily pulled his shirt back down and continued to look for an injury. There were several cuts on his arms, but nothing that looked too serious. Next she checked his head and didn't see much more then a couple of bruises. It was possible he had a concussion, but that would not explain all the blood. Finally she turned to examine his legs and found a foot long gash on the thigh of his left leg. Infection had set in and it still trickled out a steady stream of blood.

Lily felt panic eating away at the back of her mind. She didn't know any healing spells; that was Lori's area of expertise. Lily could charm pants off a door but she couldn't even heal a minor scratch, let alone a nasty gash like the one James had.

"Oh Lily, you are hopeless," She whispered softly out loud. "Okay, we have to clean out the wound and stop the bleeding. I can do that."

Fighting tears of helplessness and frustration, Lily proceeded to rip several strips of cloth from the bottoms of both hers and James robes. Carefully she cleaned as much of the dirt out of the wound as she could, before folding the largest strip in half and placing it over the top of the cut. Next she wrapped the thinner strips around James's leg and the makeshift bandage and tied them just tight enough to hold the bandage securely in place. Next she stood up and tried to figure out where exactly they were and which way to go.

No luck. They were completely lost and Lily knew it was her fault; she was the one who had stormed away from the clearing in the dark last night without any idea where she was going. Feeling guiltily, she turned back to face James where he lay against the tree looking so helpless. He had followed her to keep her from harm.

"Oh, James, what have I done?" Lily walked stiffly back and sat beside him, pulling his head onto her lap so she could tenderly brush his unruly hair away from his face. As she peered down at his face, she couldn't help but smile sadly as she recalled his boyish charm and reckless behavior through their years at Hogwarts. Thinking back, she recalled the exact moment when she realized there was so much more to him then she had ever considered. Leaning down she softly kissed his forehead before pulling off her cloak, folded it up, and tucked it underneath his head. She would be warm enough in her t-shirt and jeans for the day.

Standing up she searched the surrounding area for a more protected place and found nothing. They couldn't just sit out in the middle of the forest and hope to be left alone by the various magical creatures that lived there. Not to mention that there was no telling when Voldemort would decide to return and besides, James needed immediate medical attention.

Lily began pacing back and forth beside James trying to think of what to do. Suddenly she heard footsteps coming through the forest, it sounded like two or three people. Uncertain Lily backed up and knelt beside James before she took out her wand and held it pointed in the direction she thought the footsteps were coming from.

* * *

The moment Moody had laid eyes on Dumbledore he'd rushed forward and carefully opened the door so he could check to see if his old friend was alright. Remus and Lori had been right behind him and both had gasped in horror at the sight of Dumbledore lying so still on the floor. Remus immediately turned and ran back down the stairs heading for the hospital wing and Madam Pomfrey.

Lori hurried to the Headmaster's side as Moody felt for a pulse.

"Is he?" Lori asked in a small voice.

"He's alive," Moody rasped out thankfully.

"What do you think happened? I can do some healing magic," Lori responded.

"Hard to say at this point without a diagnostic scan, though he looks to be in shock."

Lori conjured several blankets and a few pillows. Carefully with Moody's help they moved him off of the floor and onto a conjured couch behind the desk. Covering him with blankets and checking his temperature Lori tried to hold back the fear that was growing inside of her.

"Where did that boy go?" Moody grouched.

"For help, it won't take him long. He knows all the short cuts in the castle."

"Hmm, yes I suppose any of those particular four boys would know this castle better than the staff," Moody replied.

Sure enough less then fifteen minutes had passed before Remus returned with Madam Pomfrey and Professor Flitwick in tow. Worriedly Madam Pomfrey rushed to Dumbledore's side and immediately set to examining him. She muttered as she cast spell after spell for several minutes before turning and announcing her findings to the others.

"His heart gave out. A minor heart attack, but he should be alright now. You did well in treating him for shock Miss Wilson; you have the makings of a fine healer." Conjuring up a stretcher she asked for Professor Flitwick and Auror Moody to help her transfer Dumbledore onto it. "We should move him to the hospital now so I can make him more comfortable and administer a strengthening potion."

With Madam Pomfrey leading the way, they headed back to the Hospital wing. As they rounded a corner and turned up the stairs, Professor McGonagall ran into them and when she saw who was on the stretcher she went white as a ghost and clutched at her own heart.

"Is he?" she asked fearfully.

"He'll be fine Minerva. His heart gave out on him but he was found in time," Madam Pomfrey assured her and they continued to the hospital. McGonagall following behind as she worriedly tapped her wand against her temple.

* * *

**AN:** _There we go... finally finished fixing the formatting on this one for posting. Have a happy Halloween folks! - Jenn_

* Theodore Nott's Father, Mr. Nott, never had his first name identified in canon, so I picked a random name.


	9. Tying Up Loose Ends

**DISCLAIMER:** _ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 9: Tying Up Loose Ends**

As the doors to the hospital burst open Sirius looked up from where he sat with Jenn. Relief flooded his face when he saw Remus and Lori with the adults, but immediately turned fearful when he caught site of the stretcher bearing Dumbledore.

Remus scanned the Hospital Ward out of habit, noting that only one bed was currently in use. Less then a heartbeat later he recognized the student parked beside the occupied bed as Sirius. Without any hesitation, he rushed over to his friend intent on making certain they were alright and to find out if Sirius could tell him what had happened to James and Lily.

"You okay, Padfoot?"

"I'm fine, Moony. Jenn was in a bad way at first, but she's going to make it now. What happened to Headmaster Dumbledore?"

"Heart attack, according to Madam Pomfrey," Remus said softly. "Do you know where James and Lily are?"

"They aren't with you?"

"No. I thought they'd be in here with you."

Both Sirius and Remus both blanched as soon as the words had been voiced.

"They are still in the forest then. You have the map don't you, Moony?"

"No, James had it in his pocket," Remus replied. He watched Sirius struggle with the knowledge for a few seconds before he proceeded to tell Sirius about what he and Lori had found in the Room of Requirement and how Lily was in more danger than before.

"We have to find them. Lori can sit with Jenn in case she wakes up," Sirius commanded as he stood up once Remus had finished his tale. "Ask her while I go fetch all of our brooms from the dorm. I'll meet you by the main entrance."

Remus nodded and hurried over to where Lori was helping Madam Pomfrey. Pulling her aside he explained where he and Sirius were going and he asked her to watch over Jenn who was in the other bed. Lori grew frantic when she heard about Jenn, but immediately agreed to sit with her when she was finished aiding the school's healer.

Remus quickly headed towards the exit only to find himself pulled to a stop as he felt a hand grab onto his shoulder.

"You seem to be in a hurry, Mr. Lupin," Moody stated cagily as he let his hand drop from the teen's shoulder.

"Well, yes, I am," Remus answered as he took an unconscious step closer to the door.

"What are you and Mr. Black up to?"

Remus hesitated for second before answering, "We're going out to find Lily and James; we believe they are still out in the forest somewhere."

Moody pinned him with an intense stare before calling out to Professor McGonagall and letting her know that he was going to track down a couple of wayward students and search the forest for clues as to how the Death Eaters were getting onto the school grounds. Mad Eye then motioned a thankful Remus to lead the way.

* * *

Peter sat and chewed nervously on his paws while he huddled in a dark alcove just outside and down the hall from the Hospital Wing. He was supposed to find out if anyone other than Lily's friend had been seriously injured or killed in the trap that he'd helped set up. He'd been about to enter the ward when the Headmaster Dumbledore had been rushed into the medical wing along with several professors, an Auror, and the school's nurse in addition to Remus and Lori.

Peter had barely made it into the shadows before he was spotted and he was becoming increasingly paranoid about getting caught. Both the Auror and Professor McGonagall (not to mention his friends) could potentially recognize him for what he was, an unregistered Animagus, even if she didn't know who he was. That wasn't even considering the fact that both Remus and Sirius had heightened senses of smell due to their forms.

The rat's beady little eyes watched as first Sirius, and then Remus and the Auror left the Hospital Ward not more than a few minutes after Dumbledore had been carried inside. Sirius had turned left and taken off at a dead run while the other two took a slightly less reckless pace as they headed towards the right. Wormtail gave off a small squeak of relief as three of the four people who could potentially identify him disappeared to who knew where.

That relief was short lived though when he heard the shuffling of several soft-soled shoes making their way towards his hiding place from both directions. Thinking it was his friends tracking him with the Marauder's Map, Peter shook in abject fear as the footsteps grew closer. When they were almost right on top of him, he bolted out of the alcove and scampered as fast as he could in the direction of Gryffindor Tower only to feel his body suddenly lifted off of the floor as someone cruelly picked him up by the tail.

Squealing in fright, Peter began pedaling his legs frantically in an effort to free himself or escape the pain of his considerable weight being supported solely by his rather fragile tail. His tiny claws raking at the hand that held him suspended in the air while he frantically tried to think of how to get away without transforming back into his human self. His entire body went limp though when he heard his captor speak, his fear increasing as he recognized the speakers voice.

"Well, if it isn't our friend, Wormtail," the soft, cold voice whispered from just inches away. "There is someone who wants to see you."

Peter tried one last time to scratch his way to freedom as another hand appeared in the corner of his vision holding a small wire cage. His bid to escape was cut short though when a splash of red light engulfed as a stunning spell was fired at him, and his world went dark.

* * *

Voldemort sat fuming quietly in the dark, not quite patiently waiting for his servants to carry out his latest orders. Just when his anger reached its peak, he heard a series of slight popping sounds that indicated the arrival of several Death Eaters appearing just beyond the door to his throne room. One by one they entered the room before dropping to their knees so that they could bow to their lord.

The group ended up in a rough half circle around his throne, with obvious gaps between each other as they waited for their lord to command them. Voldemort frowned at the numerous empty spaces he counted, spaces that were meant to be filled by loyal followers that should have returned with the others. Spaces that meant his subjects had been captured during the second failed attempt to capture a simple book. He waited silently as yet several more Death Eaters walked in and took their places. When it was apparent that there would be no more joining him, he began speaking to them.

"The time has come to attack Dumbledore where he is most vulnerable, Hogwarts. Up till now I had held off attacking the _prestigious_ school because of the number of budding wizards it sent flocking to my ranks year after year. The school has outlived its purpose however, and shall be reduced to rubble."

Several of the Death Eaters grinned wickedly at the pronouncement; some though, considered Voldemort silently, wondering if it was wise to take on the formidable castle and the powerful Headmaster that ran it. As Voldemort continued to outline his plan in detail, there was a whooshing sound from the fireplace behind him. The assembled Death Eaters hissed angrily and whipped out their wands ready to protect their lord.

"Lower your wands," Voldemort ordered sharply as he turned to watch three boys clothed in green trimmed black robes step out of the fireplace.

Dusting off the ashes, the smallest and meanest looking of the three stepped forward and raised a small cage.

"My Lord, we have brought you the one you asked for," Zebulon Avery* announced.

"Well done. Let him out."

Avery opened the cage and shook it until a large fat rat fell out and landed painfully on the floor. A silent spell from the young Slytherin revived the stunned animagus.

Peter opened his tiny rodent eyes and looked fearfully around when he saw where he was and who was there he squeaked fearfully and tried to scamper under the feet of the three boys who had captured him.

"Stop!" Voldemort bellowed as he raised his wand and pointed it at Pettigrew. "Show yourself for what you really are, Wormtail." With a wave of the Dark Lord's wand Peter was forcefully transformed back to himself.

"P-p-please m-m-master d-d-don't h-h-hurt m-m-me," Peter stuttered and whined as he crouched fearfully beside Avery.

"You failed me again, _rat_," Voldemort hissed menacingly as he held his wand higher. "I warned you of the price you would pay if you failed me again."

"P-p-please L-lord-d, I b-b-brought you t-t-the g-g-girl as ord-d-dered," Peter begged.

"True. But I wanted the book. I don't have the book, do I Wormtail?"

"I d-d-don't know, g-g-great one."

"I grow weary of your presence, Wormtail," Voldemort announced as he pointed his wand at Peter. "_Crucio_."

Peter screamed and writhed on the ground as the pain seared his body. Over and over again the curse was used on him. Each of the Death Eaters were soon ordered to add their own spell in with Voldemort's, to intensify the degree to which Pettigrew suffered. Peter's screams continued to rise and fall time and again as the pain wracked his body.

An hour later Peter was back in his rat form stuffed once more in the wire cage. A slightly less furious Voldemort then passed the three Hogwarts' students a time tuner so that they could turn back time to allow them a few uninterrupted hours in which to search the Gryffindor tower for the book.

* * *

Sirius pounded up the stairs barely pausing to call out the password before he was bursting into the Gryffindor common room. He was somewhat surprised to find the room completely deserted, but didn't really stop to think about it as he quickly made his way up to the dorm where he and the other Marauder's shared while at Hogwarts and stopped dead in the doorway.

Clothes, books, and furniture had been tossed all over the room. Every which way he looked, things had been ripped, torn and mutilated as if someone had been looking for something and when they didn't find it, they had trashed the room.

The only thing not touched was James trunk where he kept his broom and his other important stuff. Grinning savagely with satisfaction at the untouched trunk, Sirius couldn't help but hope whoever had tried to open it had lost more then just a few skin cells. James had charmed his chest with the personality of a mean old badger that didn't like anyone touching it. It still looked like a regular trunk, but if you didn't know how to calm it down, it could potentially take a hand off any one foolish (or stupid) enough to think they could force it open.

Glancing behind him to make sure the room was clear; Sirius took out his wand and approached the trunk carefully. He heard it growl menacingly. _Oh boy, someone actually tried to open it more then once! _ Sirius thought to himself with a ferocious grin.

Slowly and carefully, Sirius worked the small but complex charm that James had taught him two years prior when the trunk had first been charmed, and then reached out to scratch the trunk just below the lock. The trunk growled a second time, but with far less fury than before. Repeating the spell Sirius scratched the trunk again, and this time it reluctantly opened up so Sirius could retrieve the two brooms stuffed inside. Luckily James had let Sirius keep his broom there after it had been found jinxed in the broom shed after last year's Quidditch finals.

Unfortunately Remus's broom was nothing but a pile of twigs sitting at the foot of his bed. Furiously Sirius scanned the room for anything else that might help, and noticed Peter's broom had been untouched. Walking over to it he picked it up and gave it a cursory inspection before deciding to take it in place of Remus's destroyed one.

Trotting back down the stars Sirius couldn't help but wonder why so little of Peter's stuff had been trashed. It didn't make sense, but it did fit in with his peculiar behavior and the fact that Lily swore the little rat had been following her.

Sirius was so deep in thought he didn't noticed the three figures in the common room until one of them spoke to him.

"Why if it isn't the Blood Traitor of the Ancient and Noble House of Black. What a… pleasant surprise to find you here and all alone. "

The words brought Sirius to a sudden stop halfway down the stairs as he automatically brought up the wand that was still in his hand and tucked the three brooms under one arm.

"Well, if it isn't the Slytherin Scum of the school; Avery, Goyle, and Crabbe. I see you found a way to break into our tower finally. Amazingly it only took you nearly seven years to develop the brain power to do so," Sirius sneered recklessly. "What first year did you torture anyway?"

"Oh, I didn't have to torture anyone, Black," Zebulon admitted with a malicious smile. "We got it from a friend." At this Avery held up a small cage that contained a trembling rat.

"Damn you, Avery, what have you done to Peter?" Sirius growled as he subtly maneuvered two of the brooms into a less awkward position.

"I didn't have to do anything. He gave up the password, and so much more, willingly enough," Avery replied with a leer.

Sirius looked from the rat to the face of Avery and suddenly knew he told the truth; Peter had ratted them out. After everything they had helped him with, after everything they had done together. The little turncoat had sold them out to the dark wizards.

"Why you backstabbing little rat! I'll make you regret selling us out, Wormtail, mark my words!" Sirius spat out angrily before he jumped down off the stairs and used the momentum to roll onto one of the brooms. He fumbled for five agonizing seconds before he gained control of the broom and shot up towards the ceiling, holding his wand in one hand and the remaining two brooms in the other. Holding onto the broom tightly with his legs, Sirius shot Lily's Bubble Curse at Avery and then shielded himself as swooped down and out of the portrait hole, a blue shield securely wrapped around him.

Avery furiously tried to yell out orders, but the only thing that came out was a steady steam of green bubbles. Angrily the trio ran after Sirius, but by the time they scrambled out of the Gryffindor tower, there was no sign of which way the Gryffindor had gone.

* * *

Sirius rushed through the air around the corner and down the stairs. He was soaring down them so fast that the portraits hanging on the walls had become nothing more than a blur. A sudden crashing sound from his left brought him to a stop in midair though as he scanned the immediate area for his pursuers.

"Ickle students not supposed to ride brooms in the castle," Peeves hollered suddenly at Sirius from where he had recently knocked over a suit of armor.

"Well Peeves, I trust you have heard about the terrible things happening in Hogwarts this year?"

"Of course," Peeves cackled as he flew up to hovered level with Sirius.

"Yes, a smart poltergeist such as yourself would have known before the other ghosts," Sirius commended seriously. Peeves drew himself up and puffed out his chest with pride over the praise. "You are just the person I was looking for as too," Sirius continued after a few seconds. "You are the only one we Marauders can trust. There are three Slytherin's bent on harming me in my quest to save a fellow Marauder and I need you to distract them."

Peeves seemed to take a long moment to consider this. "Who needs saving? The little rat boy again?"

"No, not the rat," Sirius barked angrily. "James."

Peeves snapped his head around and pierced Sirius with an unreadable look before asking, "James Potter needs help?"

Sirius nodded.

Peeves nodded back and saluted Sirius, "I will do as you command this time, for the Potter."

Saluting the poltergeist back, Sirius sped on his way as Peeves went lurking about for the three students that were sure to be following Sirius.

* * *

"I wonder what is taking Sirius so long," Remus muttered as he and Moody waited just inside the front door.

"Are you sure this is where he was to meet you? He wouldn't have gone back to the hospital wing expecting to find you there?" Moody asked.

"I'm cert -" Remus started to reply when he was interrupted by a loud crashing sound from upstairs.

Remus and Moody turned to look up and saw smoke billowing down from the fourth floor at the same time as Sirius swooped down and swerved to the left narrowly avoiding a splash of blue light that struck another suit of armor. Sirius laughed and fired a counter spell back as three other seventh years dressed in Slytherin colors came tumbling down the stairs in a sorry state.

Avery was still spouting bubbles; Crabbe was covered in what looked like bits and pieces of the hallway armor and glue, while Goyle was trying to hold an engorged hand high enough to send another spell at Sirius. The charm Sirius had just fired caught Crabbe full in the face causing him to fall backwards and clutch at his face as boils erupted all over it. Remus ran to join in the fray, shooting a leg locker curse at Avery and tripping the other teen before whipping around in time to deflect a stray curse from Goyle.

Moody raised his wand and stunned the three Slytherins, who'd been crowded together at the bottom of the stairs, in a single spell and then stomped over to where Remus was beneath by a floating Sirius.

"Just what was that all about?" The grizzled Auror growled out.

"They trashed our dorm, and attacked me as I was leaving the Gryffindor Common Room," Sirius spat out furiously as he dropped to the ground and moved the broom he'd been riding into his hand with the others.

"Indeed," Moody stated thoughtfully. "Well let's secure them for the moment and we can question them about their behavior later."

Together they tied the three up, stuffed them into the nearest closet, and then charmed the door so that it could only be opened from the outside. As they worked, Peeves popped into sight behind them and strutted proudly as he watched the proceedings with a grin.

"Peeves, I want to thank you for your help. I never would have made it through the trap they had set if it wasn't for you," Sirius said solemnly as he turned to face the poltergeist.

"I did it for James and the Marauders," Peeves proudly replied. "Mission accomplished. Orders sir?"

"I wish you to keep watch over the prisoners Private Peeves. It is your duty to annoy them as thoroughly as possible and keep them secured until we can question them. Recruit any ghosts you feel necessary and instruct them that they are to follow your orders," Sirius ordered.

"Yes Sir!" Peeves returned with a salute.

Sirius and Remus both saluted back and then Sirius handed Moony Peter's broom and gave James's to Moody.

"Sorry, yours was destroyed Moony," Sirius stated when Remus tossed a curious look his way after realizing whose broom he was holding.

Together the three of them stepped out side, mounted the brooms, and flew towards the forest leaving Peeves laughing evilly behind.

* * *

**AN:** _Whew... there were TONS of changes to this chapter... some of it was moved to the next chapter and the rest was either rewritten to make it flow smoother or was deleted completely because it had been made irrelevant by earlier changes in the story. I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter and hope to have the next chapter up in a timely manner. Expect a wait of at least seven days though, because the next two chapters will both have far more changes to them this even this one did. - Jenn_

*Zebulon Avery – since JKR didn't offer us a name for either of the Avery's that appear in the books, I pretty much pulled a random name off of the common English names of the 1800's to use for Snape's contemporary here much as I did for Nott Sr. in a previous chapter.


	10. Half a Rescue

**DISCLAIMER: **_ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 10: Half a Rescue**

Lily held her breath as the footsteps came closer; her hands trembling and shaking so badly she feared she would miss completely should she attempt to fire a spell. As she watched, the bushes in front of her began to rustle and shake as though someone or something was pushing their way through. The bushes gave one last violent heave and then… a unicorn stepped onto the path just in front of Lily. Laughing and crying with relief Lily lowered her wand and watched curiously as the unicorn stepped closer. The bushes rattled again as a second unicorn stepped out beside the first.

Leaning forward Lily reached her hand out towards the first unicorn and waited silently as it raised its muzzle and sniffed at her outstretched hand. Slowly it moved closer until its soft muzzle brushed against her palm. Tenderly Lily stroked the unicorn's face and neck as it gently pushed closer still. The second dear pushed close as well and in no time Lily was petting and stroking both as she knelt there besides James.

After several minutes the first unicorn leaned down to nuzzle James neck. Stepping around his legs the unicorn used a hoof to scrap away some leaves and twigs before it lay down beside James and pressed close enough to keep him warm. Soon the second unicorn was lying beside Lily.

Sitting there with the two fully grown unicorns in the growing light of morning, Lily felt herself truly relax for the first time since she had woken from the terrible nightmare that Voldemort had sent her. Lying down beside James and between both unicorns Lily sighed softly and let herself drift off slowly to sleep.

_And she dreamed…_

She was walking upstairs carrying a tiny babe in her arms. Humming softly she couldn't help but feel she had finally found everything she had ever been looking for. From downstairs she could hear James arguing with Sirius again over some perceived slight. Laughing softly Lily just shook her head and opened the baby's door with a nudge of her foot so as not to disturb the little one. As she moved over the crib and made to set the baby down in the crib the little body shuddered and gave a soft cry.

"Shhh… hush now, little darlin', Momma's here," Lily murmured softly as she pulled her son back to her chest and sat down in the rocking chair instead. Rocking gently she hummed an old lullaby her mum had sang to her when she was younger.

"Hush my baby close your eyes, don't be scared and don't you cry, I will be here and in your dreams, for as long as stars fill the sky. My love for you will keep you safe, will hold you for eternity, and for as long as the stars fill the sky."

As she sang the baby boy watched her with wide eyes as his cries slowly faded. Blinking the babe struggled to keep his eyes open while Lily's soft voice filled the room. In no time he was sleeping soundly once more. After a few moments, Lily stood up carefully and placed the baby tenderly in his crib as she continued to hum the melody under her breath. Lovingly, she pulled up his covers and placed a tender kiss on his forehead. Smiling softly she brushed his unruly black hair out of his face and watched his peaceful sleeping for several minutes before she stepped away from the crib and turned to the door.

"Good Night, Harry," She whispered as she silently pulled the door closed until only a small inch of light fell onto the floor of the baby's room.

Slipping quietly back downstairs Lily continued to hum softly under her breath.

* * *

Okay boys; let's head back to where the battle took place," Moody called out above the rushing wind as they flew high above the ground. Remus and Sirius nodded to show they understood and the three of them angled their brooms downward so that they were practically skimming the tops of the trees of the Forbidden Forest. In no time at all they were slowing down over the clearing where they had fought for their lives the night before.

Landing off to the side of the clearing Sirius and Remus stood quietly by as Moody walked around surveying the perimeter of the clearing before he turned to look at the blood stained ground in the middle. After studying patterns on the ground that only he could see, he turned to the north to examine the blackened trees and shrubs that had been scorched by Jenn's Pyro Spell during the battle. Carefully he noted where the many footprints marred the ground and then walked over to one of the remaining torches that the Death Eaters had placed around the clearing. Pulling it from the bracket carefully he turned it over and whispered a spell over it and watched as a blackish green smoke was drawn from the smothered torch.

Frowning Moody tossed the torch on the ground and turned back to the blood covered ground in the middle of the clearing. Muttering intently under his breath he started waving his wand in sharp, jerky movements back and forth over the bloody ground. A thin stream of yellowish smoke floated down to circle the stained earth. A sickly echo of Monica's screams wailed through the clearing as the smoke touched her blood. Moody immediately dispelled the diagnostic charm and turned sadly away from the smoke and dried blood.

"Which way did you see Lily and James go?" Moody asked wearily.

"They headed that way," Remus replied awkwardly as he pointed off somewhere to the right.

"Right lets keep to our feet and see if we can find any traces of their passing. If we don't find anything by noon, we will take to the air and weave a search pattern over the forest and see if we can spot them."

Slowly Sirius and Remus followed Moody into the surrounding trees.

* * *

Amelia Bones sat impatiently behind her mentor and boss's desk, impatiently tapping her wand against her thigh as she watched the clock and fireplace at the same time. She'd been waiting for well over an hour for Alastor to return from Hogwarts with the counter spell he'd gone to track down – a task that should have taken him no longer than a half hour max. The longer her superior took to return, the more agitated Amelia became.

She was just climbing to her feet as the desire to pace with frustration overcame her, when the door to Moody's office burst open and she found herself face to face with her boss's boss, Barty Crouch – head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Mentally growling at his order to vacate Moody's office, she unwillingly stepped outside the office until the man finished whatever it was he needed to do.

While she waited, she conjured up a scrap of parchment before pulling a self inking quill from her robe pocket so she could jot down a quick note. When she finished, she folded the parchment into the shape of an airplane and sent it off to one of her fellow Auror's desk with an order for him to head to Hogwarts in order to check in with Moody in an attempt to find out what was taking so long.

* * *

Kingsley Shacklebolt, a young recruit who had been with the department for just a few years, sighed as he crumpled the small note in his hand and watched as the conjured scrap faded back out of existence. Being the low Auror on the ladder definitely had its drawbacks when it came to annoying and tedious assignments. Believing this request would be danger and risk free; the young wizard left for the apparition point without bothering to grab a field kit, intent on his latest task.

He arrived at Hogwarts just a few minutes later and wandered through the gates and up to the castle at a leisurely pace as he didn't think there was any reason to rush along in his pursuit of tracking down Mad Eye. Shacklebolt had just entered through the main doors of the castle and was walking by one of the many broom closets that littered the ancient building, when he heard several voices call out and start banging on the door.

"What in the world?" he wondered as he walked over and tried the door. "Locked?"

"Please! Let us out!" the voices called louder this time.

"Keep your pants on," Kingsley ordered in return as he pulled out his wand and flicked it at the door while he cast a simple unlocking charm. "Alohomora"

The door swung open slowly and as Kingsley smiled into the faces of the group he'd just rescued he was caught full in the face with a stunning spell.

"Come on; let's haul him into the closet," Zebulon growled as he grabbed an arm of the downed Auror.

Once they had him stuffed in the closet they magically locked the door so it could only be opened from the inside (after hiding Shacklebolt's wand in a nearby suit of armor) and shut the door with a malicious laugh.

"Let's go," Avery ordered. "The Dark Lord wants that book. Does anyone know where that little rat got to? No? Well, no bother let's head to the seventh floor instead. Wormtail said Evans and the others had been locked up in one of the rooms up there for a few days now. The book will most likely be there."

Moving quickly up the stairs to the seventh floor the three youngest Death Eaters moved down the hall where the Room of Requirement sat and to their surprise the door stood open for them. Smiling at their luck the three boys moved carefully into the room and shut the door behind them.

* * *

Lily rolled over and snuggled into the warmth that lay beside her. Smiling as she drifted softly in her sleep. She couldn't remember when she'd had such a happy and warming dream, even if it did involve Potter and the future again. Or did it? Maybe she was just dreaming a fantasy about the future, something happy in the face of all the horrible things that she had seen.

Frowning Lily sought the comforting warmth near her once more in hopes of recapturing that peaceful feeling she'd had during her dream. She couldn't seem to find it. Feeling uncertain, Lily opened her eyes and looked around her. She was alone, no, James was lying beside her still, but the unicorns were gone. Sighing softly she reached over and felt James's forehead. He was burning up; he'd developed a fever from the infection while she had been napping.

Lily frowned deeper before sitting up so she could scoot closer and take the bandages off of James leg to check on his wound. The moment she peeled back the fabric, she gagged at the smell of the poison seeping from the wound. It had turned a nasty shade of yellows and greens and was oozing puss and blood in turns. Carefully Lily wiped it clean as best she could and then rewrapped the wound in fresh bandages. As she worked she noticed an oddly shaped bulge in James's robe pocket. Puzzled Lily reached in and pulled out a blank square of parchment.

_The map!_ Lily felt relief flood her soul as she unfolded that blessed and cursed map. Pulling out her wand she held it over the map and racked her brain for the spell to activate it.

"I need help." tap tap… nothing…

"I am desperately in need of help, show me the map." Tap tap… some words formed on the parchment.

_Messier Moony bids good day to you, and asks you to  
kindly use the proper password._

"I don't know the password!" Lily cried aloud even as more words formed.

_Messier Padfoot begs you to kindly not holler and that  
you put the map back where you found it if you can't use it._

"Damn you James! Why don't you have an emergency feature on this blasted map!"

_Messier Prongs takes offense to the cursing and kindly  
bids you to go hex yourself._

"Great Circe, James, couldn't you at least show some consideration and tact for once in your life! Even as you lie dying your pranks come back to haunt me!" Lily growled out.

_Messier Wormtail thinks you should keep your lies and pathetic  
whining to yourself._

"I swear James, must you always be up to no good! Is everything a joke to you and the others?"

_Messier Padfoot: Do you swear that __**you**_ _are up to no  
good?_

Lily sat up and frowned down at the map. Up to no good? Could that be it? Was it really that simple? Knowing she had nothing to lose, she took a quick breath and whispered, "I, Lily Evans, swear that I am up to no good and if you are smart you'll show me the map!"

_Messier Prongs: Lily, my blossoming flower, my painted lily of  
love. For you I will gladly open the wonderful world of Hogwarts._

Relieved that she hadn't been insulted yet again, Lily watched as the lines of Hogwarts melted into view over the nasty comments that had been written on the parchment.

Once she wrestled her emotions into a semblance of calm, she began searching the map among the trees of the Forbidden Forest between the inked representations of the school and nearby village. Soon enough she found her dot smack dab in the middle labeled Lily Flower – Lost. Rolling her eyes she looked further before she went back to her own dot in confusion. Where was James? Did it not show people who where sick or sleeping? Curious.

Turning back to the surrounding areas on the map Lily's attention was caught by a trio of moving dots.

Remus, Sirius, and… Moody? Who was Alastor Moody? A second label appeared beside Moody's name; Mad Eye Moody. No help, she thought. But I don't think Sirius and Remus would be with him willingly if he was a Death Eater. Would they? What if they were prisoners? Who is this Moody person? Suddenly a third label appeared by Moody's dot; Auror.

_Auror? He's on our side then! Thank goodness._ Smiling softly in relief she stood and turned in each direction trying to figure out which way she should go. The map seemed to understand her trouble as it showed her dot holding what could only be her wand out with a note beside with the incantation for the four point spell.

Taking the not so subtle hint from the map, Lily performed the spell and then double checked the map to verify the direction. Once she set the direction in her mind she turned to James where he lay unconscious on the ground. She couldn't leave him. Not even for a moment. Biting her lip she considered how to take him with her. _Ah ha!_ She knew what she could do; she could transfigure her cloak into a board and then levitate it with a charm. Quickly she turned her cloak stiff as a board and then charmed James into the air and the board right into place under him.

Carefully she used the remaining portions of James own cloak to secure him onto the board and keep him from falling. Raising him off the ground with a quick spell, she pushed him on the board before her she headed off in the direction of the three searchers had been according to the map.

* * *

Lori sat holding Jenn's hand as she watched Madam Pomfrey bustling around the still unconscious Headmaster Dumbledore. Professor McGonagall was sitting slumped in a chair nearby and didn't seem to be handling the situation very well. Lori was frightened, in the back of her mind she couldn't help but remember what the future held in store; no Lily, no James, and no Dumbledore.

How would Hogwarts cope without Dumbledore? What would happen to all the students? What was going to happen to her? And to Jenn? Neither of them had been mentioned at all in either of the books from the future. Could they both end up dead? Being murdered the same way as Lily's sister and Monica? Was Voldemort even now planning on skinning them alive?

Lori began to quietly sob as she sat there beside Jenn. Guilt flashed white hot inside her at the thought of Monica's suffering at the hands of Voldemort and his Death Eaters. A feeling of inadequacy began building inside her as she sat helplessly beside Jenn. Here she sat doing nothing while Sirius and Remus were out risking their necks trying to find Lily and James. If Jenn hadn't been hurt she would have been out there as well.

Tears tracked their way down her face as she sat there silently crying at her predicament and that of her best friends.

* * *

Moody was getting worried. It was just about high noon and still no sign had been seen of Potter or this Lily Evans. Even Lupin and Black had begun to look worried about their friends. What if they had been captured during the night by Death Eaters? How would they know where to look?

Sirius was searching along the side of the path when Moody spoke up. "I think it's time we head back and do a low flying search." Sirius opened his mouth to object, but Moody seemed to know what he was going to say.

"No, if we keep walking we will get lost out here. There's large possibility that your friends left the path and headed in just about any direction out into the forest. Also, it is possible that we could have crossed their path and they could be waiting for us at the castle right now. It's better if we mount up and fly over the forest at a leisurely pace and see if you can catch some sign of them from the air."

Sirius closed his mouth and nodded.

"We could ask Hagrid to help. He knows these woods better then anyone else," Remus added softly.

"If we don't find them before dark, we will go to Hagrid. In the mean time, mount up!"

Reluctantly Sirius and Remus mounted their brooms and angled them up and out of the forest. Once Moody joined them they began flying slowly over the tops of the trees looking for any sign of the two missing friends.

* * *

Peter the rat lay stunned in the far back corner of the cage he had been put in after Voldemort and the Death Eaters had tortured him. His cage had been thrown clear when Sirius had attacked the other boys. As he lay there staring at nothing, he could remember the look of absolute disgust that Black had turned in his direction before he'd zoomed out of the tower on his broom.

Whimpering softly Peter turned his head slowly as he began to take in his surroundings. He was alone in the common room and the cage had been damaged during the short fight. Moving gingerly up onto his feet he half crawled and half dragged himself towards the bent metal that made up the cage door.

Carefully he shoved his head into the gap and shoved weakly at the door while scrabbling with his back claws in order to push his way out. Bit by bit he managed to get halfway out when something held him back. Turning to look behind him, he saw that his tail had been pinned under an over turned chair and pinched fast in the mutilated cage wall. Already suffering terribly from his torture at the hands of the Dark Lord and his followers, the additional pain hadn't penetrated his fog filled mind until the moment he saw his tail.

Scooting fully back inside the cage Peter turned until he could reach his tail and with his furry little forefeet tried to tug the tail free. When he couldn't get it loose, he looked frantically around for something to help him out. If he could only get free of the cage he'd be able to transform back to himself, but while he remained a captive the magical bindings on the cage prevented him from changing forms.

Desperately he tried pulling his tail loose again but it was no use. It wouldn't budge and each desperate tug only aggravated the pain he felt from the trapped appendage. Fearful of the Death Eaters or his former friends returning, Peter closed his eyes as he firmly placed his long worm-like tail between his teeth and began the painful process of chewing off a large portion of his tail in order to himself free.

* * *

Lily quickly grew tired as she pushed James along in front of her. She had no idea how long she had walked last night, or how long they'd been out looking for... for… Monica. Not to mention the fact that she'd acquired her own share of injuries during the battle with the Death Eaters the night before. Lily choked back a sob as the grief for her youngest friend squeezed her hear tightly before she forcefully pushed all thoughts of Monica and her death out of her mind so she could focus on getting out of the forest. Wiping a few stray tears from her face she pushed on a bit further in the hopes that she was getting close to the three searchers. She'd been trudging for close to two hours since she'd first found and activated the map.

Think about the map, Lily paused for a moment to open the parchment up to check on her progress. A brief glance was all it took for her to realize that the three dots were moving considerably faster now. And they were speeding off away from where she now stood! They were leaving the forest!

_No! Not that!_ Lily thought frantically as she stared down at the animated map in her hands. _Think Lily, think_, she growled to herself as she tried to think of a way to get the attention of the rapidly retreating searchers. A heartbeat later, hope lit her eyes as she pointed her wand above her head and fired off a trio of red sparks high into the air, hoping that where ever Sirius and Remus were they would see them.

After a full minute had passed, she fired another round of sparks into the air. Not knowing if they'd been seen, she fired off two more series of sparks aiming higher yet so that the sparks could be seen from farther away.

* * *

**AN: **_I'd like to apologize for the delay in posting this chapter, it's been a long month and I was far busier then anticipated with my project and then with a sick kid – and let me tell you, sick kids are never fun! Especially when they get you sick in exchange for taking care of them. Ungrateful brats! lol… on the upside, chapter 11 is also complete and will be added tomorrow as a bonus for your patience in waiting for this chapter! I'd have it up today, but I still need to copy it over onto an uploadable file and edit the format, which I am doing this evening so I can post it first thing in the morning! Until then, I hoped you enjoyed the cliffie and look forward to reading my latest reviews! – Jenn_


	11. Dangerous Moon Rising

**DISCLAIMER: **_ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 11: Dangerous Moon Rising**

Lord Voldemort had not moved once since the student Death Eaters had scurried from his presence. He sat unmoving in his chair before the fire place as he stared somewhat vacantly at a spot off to the right of the doorway into the room. Several older Death Eaters stood nervously around the edges of the room and kept casting furtive glances over to where Voldemort sat waiting as if expecting their lord and master to punish them at the drop of a hat.

The floor in front of the Dark Lord's chair was covered in a huge dark stain that reflected the flickering light of the fire. A faint trace of steam rose from the sticky substance as it dried slowing by the heat of the fire, evidence that another of the Dark Lord's followers had displeased the volatile wizard.

As the silence stretched out a single Death Eater appeared suddenly onto the very spot Voldemort had been watching. Hurrying forward he sidestepped the stain and leaned close to whisper to the Dark Lord. Grinning Voldemort shoved the Death Eater back and stood up from the chair. He pointed to three of the Death Eaters in the surrounding room and jerked his thumb towards the informant before he turned his back on them.

Without a word the four Death Eaters left to carry out their master's instructions.

* * *

Sweeping back and forth Sirius desperately longed to find _some_ trace of his best friend and Lily. They had to be okay, they just had to be. It had been two hours since they'd turned around and still they hadn't spotted so much as a single thread from one of their missing friends' cloaks. He looked over at Remus and saw that he too was feeling disheartened by the fruitless search.

Facing forward once more, Sirius contemplated turning around and searching by himself, but then he couldn't leave Jenn for too long. James might be the closest thing to family he had, but Jenn… he loved Jenn. James would understand, wouldn't he? He'd do the same for Lily, Sirius was sure of it. Wondering where James could have gone to, Sirius happened to look back over his shoulder and saw the first burst of red sparks climb into the sky several miles back and to the far east of where they had been searching.

"Moody," Sirius cried out happily, "I see sparks! That has to be them!"

"Where?" Moody called back as he turned around and joined the younger wizard quick as a flash.

"There!" Remus barked as he turned and caught sight of the second and third sets of sparks climb into the sky.

Moody turned and led the way back towards the dangling red sparks as three more burst into the air as the first few sets of red lights faded away. Leaning forward, the three of them pushed the brooms to their limit as they raced just above the trees tops towards the faint red traces of magic that clung to the night air. As they grew close to the point of origin of the sparks, they slowed down and slipped between the tree tops until they were weaving carefully through the many trunks of the ancient forest.

Just before they arrived at where Moody estimated the sparks had been sent from, he slowed their group even further so that they were inching along through the branches until that could be sure that it was indeed James and Lily and not the Death Eaters.

* * *

Sturgis and Emmeline sat stiffly on opposite sides of the holding cells as they watched the imprisoned Death Eaters glaring from their individual cells. The two of them had been assigned to watch over the prisoners while they waited for Moody to return from Hogwarts with the counter spell to the bubble curse that Bellatrix was still afflicted with. It was a boring job and the constant barrage of insults being hurled from the Lestrange brothers were grating on the two Aurors' nerves.

They had been on guard duty for nearly three hours when the lights in the area were suddenly doused, immersing the entire room in a blanket of darkness. Sturgis called out for Emmeline to sit tight while he attempted to discover what was going on after double checking the cell doors.

He'd barely moved a few steps away from where he'd been seated with the air began to rapidly grow colder and Sturgis nervously inched away from the cell doors as he swung his wand left and right in an effort to determine if there was any danger. He was about to call out to his partner a second time when with-out warning the door leading from the outer offices burst open in a flash of bright orange light. Emmeline was knocked unconscious when the blast threw her backwards where her head connected with the wall and she went down in a crumpled heap.

Sturgis had ducked down and just missed getting clipped by the shattered remains of the outer door. He had just begun crawling towards where he last remembered Emmeline's position to be when he felt a wave of despair wash over him as five dementors floated into the room. He rolled over onto his back so he could defend himself from the crushing onslaught of the dementor's attack, but his efforts grew weaker rapidly as the demonic beings rushed closer. Three times he attempted the Patronus Charm before the sheer number of dementors over whelmed him. Drowning in the cold and despair, Sturgis slowly lost consciousness.

* * *

Lily finally stopped firing off more sparks as she gazed up into the sky and watched the magic slowly fading from existence. Nothing, they hadn't even noticed the sparks. Dropping to her knees she buried her face in her palms as she stopped fighting the despair that had filled her from the moment she realized her would be rescuers had apparently given up. So certain she had failed, she never even bothered to check the map again. If she would have looked, she'd have seen the three dots speeding towards her.

Several minutes passed as Lily silently sobbed with the world around her pressing in on her. She then had somewhat of a shock when the near silence of the forest around her was shattered by the sound of voices calling out in the growing darkness.

"James! Lily!"

"James?"

"Lily?"

"Potter? Evans?"

Relief and hope surged through Lily as she climbed wearily to her feet and yelled out in return, "Here! Here we are! HELP! Please! Over here!"

"Hold tight! We're on our way!"

Sirius! It had to be Sirius and Remus! Lily gave a cry of joy as she finally turned to the map, and sure enough they had turned around and come back for her and James. There was a sudden whooshing sound as the three of them swooped down from the sky on broom and landed with a thump beside her. Tearfully Lily ran to Sirius, wrapped her arms around him, and cried as she babbled out thanks you's.

"I didn't think you'd look, I thought you'd left. I was so scared. James needs help. He's dying."

Awkwardly Sirius patted Lily's back while he gave Remus a panicked look because he had no idea how to handle Lily's breakdown. Finally he murmured a few soft comforting phrases.

"There, there; we're here now. Everything will be alright, you'll see."

Lily smiled gratefully up at Sirius before she pulled him over to where James still hovered a foot off the ground on the makeshift stretcher.

"Can you help him?"

"Stand aside girl," Moody muttered as he stepped up beside James and carefully peeled back the bandage on the unconscious boy's leg while Lily watched fearfully.

Sirius reached out and gently clasped her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze as Remus came up and placed his hand on her other shoulder. Lily gave them both a grateful squeeze and a small tight smile before turning back to Moody where he was checking James temperature.

"Will he be alright?" Lily asked desperately when she couldn't stand the waiting any longer.

"He needs more help then I can give him. The infection has gone too far and his temperature is out of control."

Lily broke down again as she collapsed on knees while she covered her face and cried, "I couldn't do anything. I can't even manage a simple healing spell."

Moody frowned down at Lily. He'd never dealt with women well, and the younger they were the harder they were to deal with in his mind. It was even worse when they cried. Sighing a silent frustrated sigh, Moody walked over to Lily and hauled her up to her feet.

"Look, he needs help. Sitting here crying about what you could and couldn't do is pointless. He's still alive and we are here to get you both back to the castle. Now buck up and get a move on. Every minute counts," Moody growled out as kindly as he could.

Lily had stopped crying during Moody's short speech and nodded back at him when he was finished. Hiccupping softly she wiped her eyes on her sleeve and then stood back as they tried to figure out how to get James back to the school quickly.

Finally moody conjured several ropes and secure James between two of the brooms.

"Alright, Black and I will fly Potter back to the castle. Will the two of you fit on that broom, Lupin?" Moody asked.

"I don't think so sir. However, I know this forest like the back of my hand; I can lead Lily safely back to the castle on foot. If we get into any trouble I can set Lily on the broom and send to her the castle quickly."

Moody nodded as he and Sirius mounted the brooms. Kicking off they hovered several minutes, checking to make sure James was secure, before they rose above the trees and zoomed off towards Hogwarts.

"Let's get moving, Lily," Remus said quietly as he took several steps towards the castle.

Lily nodded and silently fell in beside Remus as they moved off in the same direction Moody and Sirius had gone.

Twenty minutes later they were still walking silently, but Lily was growing exhausted. Tired and sore from the long hours trekking through the forest and from the emotional upheavals she'd been through since she awoke had her stumbling and tripping which slowed down their progress.

"Why don't you fly on the broom along side me, Lily?" Remus asked after on particularly nasty fall she took while stepping through a tangled bush.

"I don't think I'd be able to stay on the broom," Lily replied tiredly. "It's hard enough just walking, at least this way I don't fall too far."

"Ah, you might have a point," Remus mussed as he watched her wipe off the dirt and leaves from her hands and knees. "Do you need to sit and rest for a few minutes?"

Lily shook her head, "No, I don't want to stop."

"Okay," Remus replied with a small frown as they walked on in silence once more.

* * *

Once they were up in the air, Moody set a fast pace on the brooms. He was concerned about the unconscious wizard lying unconscious between him and Black. In spite of what he had told the Evans girl, he feared that there wasn't much time left for Potter given how deep the infection had set. This angered Moody. He had been close friends with the late Mr. and Mrs. Potter, and he had dangled James on his knee as a toddler. Determined to make those responsible pay, Moody swore he would catch every Death Eater or die trying.

Beside him Sirius was just as determined to see those responsible get what they deserved. Although, he was focusing on one individual; rather then on the hundreds of Death Eaters under Voldemort like Moody. _Peter Pettigrew; Wormtail the forth Marauder and close friend of James, Remus and himself._ Sirius thought to himself. _Traitor, turncoat, scum of the earth, what did he think to gain? How could he turn on his best friends of six years? Why did he run to Voldemort? Was he tricked? Cursed? Threatened?_

Sirius had no answers to the questions flying around in his head. All he knew was that his brother by choice and his girlfriend were both hurt and possibly dying because of Peter's behavior. Worriedly Sirius cast a glance down at James where he lay burning with fever as the infection threaded its way through his body. Fiercely Sirius swore he would do what ever it took to avenge his makeshift family.

As they drew closer to the main entrance of the castle Moody looked over at Black flying beside him and was surprised at the stony expression on the young lad's face. Moody only saw that look once; it had been on the day Black had run away from his house and turned up at the Potter's home.

He had been over at the Potter's house for supper that night, and young James had been in the middle of relating some caper that he and the other Marauders had gotten away with during the previous year when the door had swung open with a loud crash. Mr. and Mrs. Potter had jumped up and ran to the front door to see what was going on. Several minutes later they had returned with Black in tow looking like he'd just been through an explosion. James had taken one look at his friend and then led the other boy upstairs to the extra bedroom.

Once the boys had come back down stairs Sirius had sat stone faced and silent for close to three hours, before he finally opened up and announced that he had run away from home. James and the Potters didn't seem shocked or surprised at the time, it was almost as if they had expected him to leave home sooner or later. That was little over five months ago now.

Moody frowned and wondered what could have upset Black to the point of closing up, but as he caught sight of James's body lying in agony below the two brooms Moody realized exactly what had the other boy riled. Sirius had reason enough to hate those who had done this to his best friend and the closet thing he had to a brother.

"Lets swoop lower and ride the brooms in; we don't want to jostle Potter any more then we have to," Moody announced.

"Fine," Sirius answered in a clipped voice.

They angled the broom lower and Moody opened the doors with a wave of his wand. Passing under the threshold they swerved to the left and up the stairs towards the Hospital wing.

* * *

Jenn… My name is Jenn… _Isn't it?_

Desperately she tried to hold on to herself as she floated in the blackness. There were no butterflies now, no twinkling bright flashes of light, nothing but a soundless black void. Or was it soundless? From somewhere nearby she could hear what sounded like someone crying.

Struggling to see out into the void Jenn opened her eyes. Nothing. Why couldn't she see? Jenn closed her eyes tightly and counted to ten before she opened them once more. Still nothing. Either there was nothing to see or she could see nothing.

"Sir… Sirius…" she croaked out into the darkness.

From her seat beside the bed, Lori bolted up and stared at Jenn. She could have sworn she had heard her speak. Leaning closer she whispered to her.

"Jenn? Can you hear me?"

"Lily?" came the soft croak in reply.

"Oh, thank Merlin!" Lori exclaimed softly. "Jenn, it's Lori. How do you feel?"

"Where… where is… Lily… and… and… Sirius?" Jenn breathed out.

"They'll be here soon. Sirius went to get Lily and James," Lori quickly answered, praying the others would be there soon.

"Why? Why is it so dark?" Jenn asked with difficulty.

"What do you mean?" Lori asked in confusion.

"Dark… can't… see… anything…" Jenn said as her voice faded away.

"Jenn? Jennifer?" Lori cried as she gave her a little shake.

Footsteps rushed over to her as she sat holding Jenn's hand and trying to get Jenn to speak again.

"Did she wake?" Madam Pomfrey demanded to know.

"Yes, she said it was dark and she was looking for the others," Lori replied fretfully.

"Dear me," Madam Pomfrey fretted as she turned to glance from Dumbledore to Jenn. "Here, let's move her over closer to the Headmaster's bed. That way I can be closer to hand if she wakes again while I'm attending Albus."

As they pushed Jenn's bed over to the other side of the room a loud crashing sound echoed through the hospital as the doors were flung wide open and two brooms swooped in carrying something between them.

"What is the meaning of this?" Madam Pomfrey cried angrily as she caught site of two wizards entering the ward recklessly on broomstick. "Out! Out I say!"

"Oh keep your hairnet on Pomfrey; this was the quickest way to get Potter here. He's injured and lost a considerable amount of blood… not to mention he's burning with fever from the infection that's set into the wound on his leg."

Sirius landed first and charmed the stretcher bearing James to hover while Mad Eye landed and untied the brooms.

"Potter?" Madam Pomfrey looked concerned. "Well get him on a bed and then get those confounded brooms out of my ward!"

"Yes, Ma'am," Sirius replied softly as he helped lift James off the stretcher and onto a bed.

Madam Pomfrey immediately stripped the makeshift bandages from James's leg and gasped at the putrid smell that wafted from the infected wound. Quickly, she used her wand to scour out the wound and then rushed off to grab a blood replenishing potion and a bottle of disinfectant to further clean the wound out. As she returned she handed one bottle to Moody and told him to "Lift the young man enough to get at least half of that down his throat." Before she turned back to the wound and began disinfecting it with the other potion.

While Moody poured the potion into James mouth, Sirius stood back and watched Madam Pomfrey work. So focused on his brother in all but blood he didn't notice the person approaching him until he felt a cold hand touch his arm. He jumped and swore loudly until he realized Lori was standing beside him.

"Don't do that!" Sirius muttered as he rubbed his arm and glared at Lori.

"Sorry, Jenn was awake just a bit ago."

"She was! Brilliant! How's she feeling? Will she be released soon?"

"She asked for you," Lori replied instead of answering his questions.

Sirius turned from James and hurried over to where Jenn now lay close to Dumbledore and picked up her hand before he sat down beside her.

"Jenn? Can you hear me? It's Sirius, I am here now," He whispered tenderly.

Lori watched as he continued to speak softly to an unresponsive Jenn. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts she turned and watched Madam Pomfrey finish tending James's wound and seal it up with a flick of her wand. She was still watching the process when she frowned and turned back to Sirius and then looked around the room. Turning in a complete circle as she searched for something she felt herself break out in a cold sweat.

"Sirius," she called out sharply, "Where is Lily?"

Sirius jerked around to face her as he opened his mouth to answer her, but was interrupted when she began yelling at him instead. "_Where is she, Black? She was with James! If he is here, where is Lily?_"

"Calm down child," said Moody rasped exasperation. "She's fine - "

"Then where is she?" Lori interrupted again.

"She is on her way back, with Remus," Sirius said quickly before she could start yelling again.

"Oh," Lori replied softly before she turned and walked over to an empty chair by the window and sank down into it.

Moody closed his eyes and shook his head slowly. That's twice in one day that he's had to deal with an emotional teenage female. Scratching his head he turned back and spoke softly with Madam Pomfrey before he turned and walked out.

* * *

Peter shivered as he moved slowly down the hall, behind him stretched a long thin trail of blood. He could not remember how he had gotten into the corridor but he didn't really care. The only thing that matter was that he got as far away from the Gryffindor Common Room as he could. He knew he was weakening fast due to his injuries and the blood loss and he had to find a safe place to hide where neither his friends nor the Death Eaters could find him.

Tripping over a rug, Peter the rat slumped onto the floor. His eye sight flickered from grey to black and then back again, as he laid breathing heavily on his side. To weak to raise him self and move on he lay there for almost an hour before Mrs. Norris came wandering along the hallway following his trail of blood.

As her eyes caught sight of the motionless body laying near the rug Mrs. Norris licked her chops as she hunkered down and watched the form intently as she flicked her ears forward listening for any sound. Several minutes later she rose into a half crouch and moved slowly closer to the injured rat.

Peter felt Mrs. Norris' breath as she leaned over him and sniffed at him. Too weak to run Peter only squeaked in fear as he felt Mrs. Norris grasp him firmly in her jaw. Struggling helplessly Peter felt completely helpless as he slowly sank into the blackness that was sucking at him.

Trotting along Mrs. Norris happily carried her catch to Filch's office on the second floor.

* * *

After stumbling about for at least another hour, if not two, Lily finally admitted defeat and slumped down at the base of an old gnarled oak tree. Remus heard her sigh loudly and looked back as she sank to the ground. Sighing gently himself he trudged back to where she had sat and silently sat down beside her. From the corner of his eye he watched as Lily's head slowly slumped to her chest as she fell asleep against the tree.

Concerned, Remus pulled his own cape from his shoulders and draped it over her to keep her warm. Leaning back Remus kept himself busy by searching the surrounding forest for any sign of movement. As Remus kept watch he noticed that the sun was sinking slowly towards the horizon. He felt a great sense of unease rise in his chest as he watched the sky darken as the minutes slipped by. It wasn't until the silvery edge of the moon crept into the sky that it dawned on him what was wrong.

Tonight was the full moon. Fearfully Remus turned to Lily and shook her roughly awake.

"Lily! Come on Lily, wake up!" Remus cried softly as he continued to shake her.

"What?" Lily groggily asked as she felt herself shaken fairly hard.

"You need to go now!" Remus practically shouted.

"What are you talking about?"

"You have to run. Now! Go and hurry!" Remus urged frantically now.

"Remus will you stop uttering nonsense and tell me what is going on?" Lily demanded as she turned to look at him closely.

"I don't have much time left to explain and I won't be able to control myself. Please, Lily, just go," Remus begged as he shoved the broom into her hands. "Here you will be able to get out of here faster with this."

"Remus I am not going anywhere without you!" Lily yelled as she stood up and faced Remus. She could just make out his pale features as the moon rose in the sky behind them.

Growling in frustration Remus tried to make her understand the urgency involved. "Lily what am I?"

"A boy," Lily responded without thinking.

"Lily, think, what _am_ I?"

Lily stood with a confused look on her face until it slowly dawned on her what Remus was trying to make her understand. "Oh sweet, Circe, tonight is the full moon isn't it?"

Sighing in relief as Lily finally understood how serious this could be he turned her towards the castle and gave her a quick shove. "Yes, now go!"

"But what is going to happen? Will you be okay? Should I stay nearby?" Lily didn't want to be alone and she was worried for Remus.

"I will be fine. But you must go now! If you are anywhere near you will be in danger!" Remus started backing away as Lily stood there in her shock and confusion. "Please, go now!"

With a final look over his shoulder Remus started running away from Hogwarts in an effort to put as much distance between them as possible. Fearfully, Lily watched as he disappeared before she shook herself and mounted the broom. Keeping close to the ground she flew slowly through the trees hanging on as tight as she could.

* * *

Moody headed to the closet where he and Sirius had locked the three would-be Death Eaters before they had gone to find James. He had expected to find Peeves hanging about, but it looked as though the poltergeist had taken off to cause trouble elsewhere.

Absently Moody let his magical eye wander around the empty hall before turning it onto the door of the closet. When he caught sight of Kingsley laying there unconscious instead of the boy's he'd captured, he cursed softly and hurried to open the door. Another round of curses were spewed forth when he realized that the door had been magically charmed in such a way as to prevent it from being opened from the outside.

Growling out a final obscenity, he blasted the hinges off the door and shoved the offending scrap of wood out of his way so he could reach his subordinate officer. Carefully he eased the young man out onto the floor and revived him from what was obviously nothing more than a stunning curse.

As Kingsley sat up he groaned painfully and pressed a hand to his eyes. After a minute he dropped his hand and shook his head to clear away the fog left from the stunning spell and looked around. When he caught sight of Moody he stood up abruptly and had to steady himself against the walls as a wave of dizziness passed through him.

"What happened and why are you here?" Moody growled.

"Amelia sent me to find out what was taking so long. When I got here, I heard some kids banging from inside the closet and found them locked in. I thought they had been caught in there by another student or Peeves and offered to help them out. When I unlocked the door they attacked me and that's the last thing I knew."

Moody frowned as he let his magical eye search the area again.

"Damn, they're gone now. We'd been holding them in there temporarily. They group of them had attacked another student earlier but I didn't have time to deal with them until now. I had reason to believe they are working for Voldemort," Here Kingsley groaned as he realized he had freed them by mistake. "We'll find them later. In the mean time you had better be getting back to the Ministry. I'll finish up with what I needed to do here and be there as soon as I can so we can finish the interrogations."

Kingsley nodded and headed towards the entrance. As Moody watched him go he felt a shiver of dread crawl up his spine. Deep in thought he turned and began climbing back up towards the hospital wing where he would wait beside Dumbledore, in case the older wizard awoke, while he waited for the Evans girl to return to the castle so he could get the counter to the Bubble Hex that had been placed on Bellatrix.

As he peeked in the doors he saw Dumbledore lying as still as before and thought better of disturbing his friend. Closing the door gently he took up a post in the hall just outside the hospital.

* * *

**AN:** _As promised, here's chapter 11! I can't say with any certainty when chapter 12 will be reading for posting, but I'm hoping both it and chapter 13 will be finished before Christmas. I want to at least get 12 up before the 25th, which gives me exactly 15 days from today to get it taken care of in between everything else I have going on. You can check my author's page for an update later this month to find out what's going on with the updates though. I've been keeping notes beside the link to this story in my bio. - Jenn_


	12. Revisiting Old Fears

**DISCLAIMER:** _ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 12: Revisiting Old Fears**

Kingsley Shacklebolt had apparated into the ministry and immediately headed down the lifts to level nine. From there he exited and trotted quickly down a set of stairs to the left and once on the level below he turned towards the ministry holding cells. He knew something was wrong the moment he turned down the final corridor and found the entire hallway destroyed. Pulling his wand out automatically, he fired off a messenger patronus in the direction of the Auror's offices upstairs and crouched down low to the floor as he inched forward looking for the Auror guards that would have been on duty watching the prisoners or any evidence that the perpetrators were still in the vicinity.

When he reached the portion of the wall where the door to the holding cells used to be located, Kingsley crouched down further and leaned his head around the gaping hole that now marred the wall. He tensed up when he found the room littered with debris and silent as a tomb. He flicked his eyes over the chaotic mess and quickly noted that all of the cells were empty once again.

Growling under his breath, he stood up and slipped into the ruined room now that he was certain there were no hostiles waiting inside for him. A few diagnostic charms determined that the only spells cast in the immediate area were a dozen unlocking charms, a pair of heavy blasting curses – which explained the condition of both the room and the hallway immediately outside, and a localized silencing charm that would have prevented the rest of the building from hearing the fall out from the destruction.

He'd barely taken a dozen steps inside the cell room when he came across the soulless body of Sturgis Podmore half buried under the dust and plaster fragments from the wall. He bit back a curse as he shuddered violently after getting a glimpse of the former Auror's dead eyes staring blankly out of the barely breathing body. Kingsley had to fight down the urge to vomit as he hurried past the technically now dead wizard as he continued to search the scene.

He'd just moved past Sturgis when the sounds of running footsteps in the hallway had him spinning around and crouching down in place as he brought his wand up to the ready position with a spell hovering on the tip of his tongue. It wasn't until three Aurors skidded to a stop just inside where the doorway that once stood that Kingsley lowered his wand just enough to appear non-threatening while still being ready to hex any one of the three into oblivion on the off chance that one of them was an impostor.

"What in bloody blazes happened in here, Shacklebolt?" Amelia Bones growled out as she took in the wreckage from her position at the head of the trio of Aurors.

"I found the room as is when I arrived here after speaking with Moody at Hogwarts," Kingsley began reporting out of habit. "I sent off the request for back-up when I noticed the destruction in the hallway and then proceeded to scan the room for hostiles and the current guards. I immediately noticed the empty cells and began casting diagnostic spells once I determined that the perps were no longer in the vicinity. Scans determined that the first spell cast was a wide spread localized silencing charm that encompasses the entire room and most of the hallway outside. There was also the residue from two high powered blasting curses and evidence that multiple unlocking charms were cast on the outer door and the on the individual cells."

"The guards?"

"I found Sturgis in the wreckage, his body is displaying the symptoms of one that has been administered the Dementor's Kiss. I was still looking for his partner, Emmeline."

Amelia let out a string of expletives before she quickly ordered the two Aurors with her to help Kingsley began putting the room back to rights while searching for the missing Auror. She then sent off a patronus message to the on-site medical team to get them down here to take care of what remained of Sturgis and on the off chance that Emmeline was still alive and in need of medical aide.

Seething silently as she watched the debris being vanished with each flick of a wand, Amelia vowed to track down the soul responsible for the combined escape and attack within the sanctity of the ministry. When she had time to think of how Moody was going to react to the recent break out, she quailed inside; knowing that the grizzled old Auror would consider the attack personal – especially knowing that several Death Eaters had been sprung from their incarceration in less than twenty-four hours after they had been apprehended.

"The thestral shite is going to hit the wind charm over this," Amelia prophesized under her breath as she lifted her wand and joined in the restoration efforts.

* * *

Sirius was sitting next to Jenn's bed as he absently held her hand and watched the moon rising slowly just outside the window. There was something about the moon that was important, but he just couldn't think of it at the moment. Across from him, Lori was curled up in a chair and didn't seem to be paying any attention to anything but Jenn's slow steady breathing.

Turning from the moon Sirius glanced at Jenn for several minutes before looking up to search the room. He was just turning back around to watch his girlfriend some more when he saw Mad Eye barge back into the infirmary. Sirius's eyes followed the older wizard as he stomped over to Professor McGonagall and hold a furiously whispered conversation before the Head Auror hurried out of the ward once more. Frowning Sirius wondered what that was all about and if he should be worried or not over what it could mean for their small group of friends.

Lori shifted slightly, indicating that she'd noticed Moody's rushed arrival and departure as well, and when Sirius glanced in her direction he found her staring Madam Pomfrey who was currently still hovering over James as she worked to counter the infection in his wound.

"I wish Lily and Remus would hurry up," Lori commented in a low voice as she noticed Sirius watching her. "Shouldn't they have been here by now, Sirius?"

"Huh?" Sirius replied as it took a few seconds for his brain to process the question.

"I asked if they shouldn't be here by now, it's getting fairly dark," Lori repeated.

"Soon, I would imagine, they have plenty of moonlight to see the path though if they aren't out of the woods just yet," Sirius replied absently.

"Moonlight?" Lori asked a little worriedly. "It's not a full moon tonight is it?"

"Yeah, it is. Why…" Sirius stopped as the realization of why the site of the rising moon had been bothering him for the last several minutes and what that same moon would mean for the two who were still outside of the castle walls. The blood drained from his face as the seriousness blindsided him.

"Moony! In the woods with Lily! Oh, bloody hell," Sirius growled as he jumped up and ran over to where Moody had left the brooms when he and Sirius had flown James in. Grabbing both he bolted out the door without bothering to close it.

"What in the name…?" McGonagall began as she heard the door slam into the wall. "Just want in the world is going on?"

Lori had climbed to her feet the moment Sirius burst into action and she turned to answer the professor in a fearful voice; "There is a full moon tonight, Professor; and Lily's out in the woods alone with Remus."

It took only a second for the implications of that statement to sink in before McGonagall herself rose and without another word hurried after Sirius. Lori sank back down and dropped her head into her hands as she fought for control of her emotions in the face of this latest disaster that had been thrown their way.

* * *

Remus pounded steadily on through the forest; every step a pushing him taking him further away from Lily and the danger the beast inside of him represented to her safety. Unfortunately, he knew he was too far away from the Shrieking Shack to make there in time before he transformed into the monster that he was. He was also beginning to tire quickly, the aching pains of his imminent transformation sapping his strength at a faster rate as the moon rose higher in the air and the sun disappeared beyond the horizon.

The trees passed in a slow steady procession as Remus forced himself to continue his forward movement despite the constant jarring pain each step shot through his very bones. All too soon he felt himself stumble and fall to the ground. Closing his eyes he tried to catch his breath before forcing himself back up onto his feet. Wearily, he began moving once more; his pace more a staggering walk than the former blinding run he had started with as he pushed deeper into the surrounding forest.

Glancing up briefly at the moon as it continued to climb higher into the sky, Remus began to worry if he had put enough distance between himself and Lily. Wondering if she had flown high and fast enough to clear the tree tops as well as adding to the overall distance between them during the short time they'd had since discovering his mistake in offering to stay behind to guide Lily back to the castle.

_Heading in the opposite direction, somewhere in the distance behind him…_

Lily flew steadily forward at a height of about four feet off the ground at the breakneck pace of three yards a minute. Subconsciously she knew that it would be prudent to move both faster and higher in order to reach the castle as quickly as possible, but her phobia of heights hindered her common sense as she clung to the relatively sedate pace as close to the ground as she could get without getting tangled in the widespread groundcover.

She also was terrified of taking a chance that she would loose her balance, fall off the broom, and end up injuring herself. Which would leave her on foot and unable to flee if Remus caught a whiff of her scent once he had transformed. She didn't know how much time she had left before the change would take place, but Lily knew once it happened Remus in werewolf form could travel much faster than she could on foot.

The tinge of deeper blue filling the night sky as the last rays of the sun died finally convinced her to speed up just a notch as she tried to concentrate on weaving in and out of the trees. She was beginning to think she was going to make it out of the woods in time when a tree seemingly sprung up out of nowhere right in front of her.

She barely had time to jump clear of the broom before it smashed itself to pieces in the boughs of the ancient elm tree. Shocked by the sudden impact of the ground and loss of breath as she landed, Lily lay there for several precious minutes before the realization that she was still in the forest and that the broom had been destroyed in the crash sank in.

Shaking off the lingering feelings of pain and panic, Lily climbed to her feet and turned around in a complete circle to get her bearings before she trotted off in the direction she had previously been flying. As she moved through the forest she imagined she could feel the moon creeping higher into the sky on her right. Valiantly, she fought off her growing weariness and forced herself to keep going in spite of her injuries.

* * *

Sirius was running down the steps just outside the castle's entrance with the two brooms in hand when he heard Professor McGonagall calling his name. Without breaking his stride, he turned and glanced back up at his professor before he paused just long enough to climb onto James's broom with his own broom in the other hand when he felt McGonagall grab his arm.

"You have no idea what you are getting into out there boy. Now is not the time to rush headlong out into the forest," McGonagall snapped as she tried to drag Sirius down from the broom.

"Professor, Lily is out there all alone with Remus. With everything that has happened neither one of them may realize what tonight is and if they don't have a clear view of the sky, Lily could be in danger. She is in danger," Sirius retorted as he tried to pull free of McGonagall's hand. "I know what I am doing Ma'am. I am going to save my best friend's girlfriend from a werewolf. James would be going too, but he is hovering near death up there in the hospital right now."

Professor McGonagall narrowed her eyes but didn't let go of Sirius's arm. Instead she used her other hand to take the extra broom from Sirius. "I never said we shouldn't go find her Black. I only meant you should not go alone." As she mounted the broom she released Sirius's arm and pushed up from the ground. "Well? Lead on, you know where you and Moody left them."

Without a word, Sirius kicked off towards the dark shadows of the forest. He could hear McGonagall behind him as they soon reached the forest and dropped low enough that they were just skimming over the tops of the trees. After an hour of flying he finally ducked down into the trees and began skimming along the path where Remus and Lily had been left on foot when he and Moody had flown off with James on the better brooms.

"They should be somewhere along this path, Professor. I don't know how fast they were moving, Lily was exhausted from the night spent outside when we found her and James earlier this afternoon. I don't know if she had any injuries from the battle either, as she was far more concerned with James's condition than her own."

"We'll search further into the forest and then turn back after an hour if we don't find any signs of them. Keep your eyes and ears open and don't get too close to the ground in case we stumble upon Mr. Lupin transformed," McGonagall replied as she lit the tip of her wand.

* * *

She was floating once again, silently hanging there in the absolute darkness. As she lay there, she felt as if there was someone hovering just out of site – looking for her. Uncomfortable with her surroundings, she peered out in all directions in an effort to through the darkness that encompassed her, but no matter which way she looked there was nothing but a blanket of blackness to be found.

Just when the unchanging gloom felt as if it had begun pressing in all around her, a spark flared to life in the distance and Jenn turned towards it in relief. With a dreamlike quality, the light drew closer as she watched and soon she could make out a dozen or so trees framed in what looked like sunlight. As they drew closer, she could feel a wave of warm air rolling off the trees as the lights danced in the branches.

Drawing even closer she could see the light morphing into thousands of butterflies that fluttered and danced gracefully around the trees. She remembered those butterflies… she recalled seeing something like them not too long ago. Moving closer yet, she watched as they whirled and twirled in and out of the branches. Beautiful reds, yellows and oranges rising and falling about the trees and as Jenn watched they reminded her of flames. Stepping even nearer to one particular tree, Jenn reached out to touch one of the butterflies that had landed on a leaf. The moment she brushed against the tiny insect, it felt as if she had been burned.

"What the…!" Jenn cried softly as she looked closer at the butterflies. "Sweet Magic!" she exclaimed when she realized they weren't butterflies at all – they were flames. The trees were _burning_!

Everywhere she turned the trees were on fire with millions of sparks dancing among the branches where the butterflies had once fluttered. Frantically, Jenn backed away from the trees as the heat rose in intensity. Turning to flee the dangerously out of control fire, she now found herself trapped inside a burning clearing. There was no escape.

Mesmerized in spite of her growing terror, she watched as the fires unexpectedly began to die out while the brilliant reds, oranges, and yellows slowly faded to shades of gray – the color of ashes. Then, even the dull ash faded back into the black emptiness that she had awoken in.

Desperately, Jenn tried to hold onto the colors, she feared the complete darkness that had held her trapped for so long. As the darkness became complete she began crying softly. Longing for comfort she cried out for the comforting warmth of the one she loved, "Sirius?"

Off to one side of her bed, dozing fitfully in one of the stiff visitor chairs that littered the infirmary, Lori was abruptly pulled into wakefulness when she heard Jenn call out a second time. Relief flooded through her as she leaned forward and replied, "Just me here, Jenn."

"Where's… Sirius?" Jenn asked a bit stronger.

"He went to fetch Lily," Lori replied tentatively, masking her worries about their missing friend to avoid upsetting Jenn now that the other young witch had woken up once more.

"Oh, Where am I?" Jenn asked quietly.

"You're in the hospital wing," Lori answered soothingly.

"Why is it so dark?" Jenn demanded softly.

"What do you mean? The entire room is filled with soft candle light. In fact, there are several candles floating right above your bed. Can't you see them?" Lori said as she leaned closer.

"No," Jenn croaked as she finally turned her face fully towards Lori. "I see nothing."

Lori gasped as she saw Jenn's eyes for the first time since she had been injured in the fire. Her once bright blue eyes had faded to a milky white and there were gruesome scars marring the cornea where the sparks of the fire had touched her eyes. Jenn had been rendered blind.

"Madam Pomfrey!" Lori cried desperately as she continued to stare at the ruined remains of Jenn's eyes.

"What is it child?" Madam Pomfrey asked as she hurried over from where she had been monitoring James's recovery. When Lori didn't answer she turned and caught a glimpse of Jenn's eyes before they closed. "Oh." was all she said before she hurried into her office in search of a potion had been known to cure certain types of magical blindness. It didn't take her long to locate the small vial of a grayish looking liquid and in seemingly no time at all she was once more standing beside Jenn's bed. "Open your eyes for me, child, I have a potion that should clear up the last of your injuries now that we know the extent of the damage."

Jenn reluctantly opened her eyes as commanded and instinctively flinched as Madam Pomfrey applied two drops of the potion to each eye.

"Now open and close them for me a few times, so that the potion coats each eye evenly," Madam Pomfrey instructed gently. She watched to insure the young woman complied before continuing, "Good, good, in the morning when you wake up, your eyes should be healed good as new. Now, get some rest; sleep will help them mend faster dear."

Jenn nodded heavily as she closed her eyes a final time and turned away from the healer with Lori watching sadly from her perch beside the bed.

* * *

Remus had finally gone as far as he could. After running, and then walking, for over two hours he could go no further as the time for his transformation finally arrived. He only prayed that he had been able to put enough distance between himself and Lily. Slumping down to the ground he closed his eyes to block out the site of the full moon rising higher into the sky.

His breath came in ragged gulps as he fought to remain in control of both his mind and his body. He had hoped he could draw the might of his inner wolf to move just a bit further into the surrounding woods, but his entire being was hovering on the abyss and he didn't have enough strength to even climb back onto his feet. Leaning forward to rest his forehead on the cool soil beneath him, he closed his eyes for a brief moment.

At the same time the moon reached its highest point in the sky, bathing the world below in a shimmering, cold, blue light. As the light touched the quivering figure of Remus his eyes flew open in horror. Time had run out, even now he could feel his body changing, the pain of it cutting through his sanity. His last human thought was a frantic prayer sent to the heaven in hope that Lily was safely beyond his reach.

Breathing harshly in the pale moonlight after the agonizing transformation, the werewolf lifted his head and scented the night air around him. Suddenly, he turned sharply to his left and growled softly as he tested the air a second time. Sure of himself the werewolf grinned in its maniac way and let out a howl of triumph and hunger. He had caught the scent of a woman alone in the surrounding woods.

Surging forward with an inhuman strength that hadn't been there prior to his change, the werewolf bounded eagerly towards the tantalizing scent that floated on the breezes that night.

* * *

**AN:** _As promised, here's chapter 12, even thought it ends on a rather annoying cliffie. This one was far easier to clean up, thankfully. Chap 13 is nearly ready for posting as well and should be up before the 25__th__ with chap 14 following sometime before New Year. Chap 15 will either be posted around the same time or sometime after the first of the year – hard to say at this point because I'm not that far into the revisions yet – though I have already made some spot checks for misspellings and grammatical errors for the entire story. _

_Hope everyone enjoys the chapter! – Jenn_


	13. In the Nick of Time

**DISCLAIMER:** _ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 13: In the Nick of Time**

After another two hours of alternating between walking and trotting, Lily had to rest. She had to save what little energy she had left in case Moony or one of the other various forest dwellers came after her. The thought of Remus in his werewolf form filled her with fear, for Lily knew she would never be able to outrun him for long if he came after her.

Leaning weakly against one of the many trees she took a few shaky breathes before she looked up at the moon in an effort to figure out how much time she had left before Remus transformed. Only minutes by the looks of it, fighting back her terror Lily pulled out the Marauder's map quickly activated it with a whispered 'I solemnly swear I am up to no good.'

Lighting her wand tip she quickly searched the map for the castle. Cursing softly Lily realized she had been moving in the wrong direction. Somewhere after the broom hand crashed she'd become turned around and she'd been moving steady further away from the castle.

"This is not good," Lily whispered as she searched the map and soon found a tiny dot labeled Moony just a few inches away from her own dot on the map. "Oh no," she cried when she realized that they were not far enough apart. Somehow when she had moved off the path she had turned back in the direction Remus had taken and it looks as if he had veered off track as well. They were now less then a mile or two apart.

Panic rose quickly as she realized that she would never make it to safety before he transformed. After a quick glance at the map to ensure her direction she took off at a steady trot that she knew she'd never be able to maintain. Tucking the map in her pocket she tried not to think about what was happening with Remus. As she ran she began looking for a tree that would be easy to climb in the event that the Remus the werewolf caught her scent.

Ten minutes later she panicked as an eerie howl rose a short distance behind her. Desperately she made for a nearby oak tree and began pulling herself up into the branches. As she climbed she could hear something crashing through the woods from the direction of the howl. She had been scented.

* * *

Professor McGonagall and Sirius had been searching for a little over an hour and still hadn't found Remus and Lily. They had been searching along the path where Moody and Sirius had left the pair around mid-afternoon, but other than a few scattered footprints there'd been no sign of the missing teens.

They were just getting ready to veer away from the path, to search through the trees on either side of the forest trail, when Sirius felt an urge to fly down closer to the ground as he swept along. He was just weaving around a particularly dense patch of magical ivy when he suddenly saw something reflecting against the rising full moon's light. "Professor McGonagall, I think I found something!" he cried urgently.

"Where at, Mr. Black?" McGonagall asked wearily.

"Down here," Sirius answered.

Together they landed on the forest floor to investigate. At the base of the tree that Sirius found a strip of twisted silver surrounded by a scattering of large splinters and bristles that he quickly identified as the remains of a shattered broom. Lifting the bit of sliver that had once held the tail twigs of the broom in place, Sirius recognized the etchings that confirmed his worst fears – this broom had once belonged to Pettigrew.

"Well, what was it you found, Black?" McGonagall queried as she walked up behind him.

"The broken remains of the broom Remus had with him. It was Peter's old Cleansweep Two; we'd taken it because Remus's had been smashed up when our dorm was wrecked. Remus was the one who was riding it, but it couldn't carry two people – that's why Remus and Lily were walking back to the castle on foot instead of flying back with us," Sirius replied quietly.

"I see," McGonagall intoned as she gently pushed past Sirius. "Search the ground and see if you can find any footprints heading away from the wreckage."

Professor McGonagall moved off to the right as Sirius searched to the left. After a few moments he came across the spot where Lily had jumped from the broom before it hit the tree.

"Here professor, I found something," Sirius called out.

Professor McGonagall hurried over and took a brief look at the marks on the ground. Then she looked up and smiled tightly at Sirius as they started to follow the footprints away from the shattered broom. Ten minutes later they both froze as they heard the cry of a werewolf echo through the forest.

Professor McGonagall blanched and Sirius felt his heart stop for a brief second before it began pounding in his ears. They exchanged a brief look before the two of them mounted the brooms and flew up and out of the trees. Up in the air there was a chance that they could see which direction the werewolf was traveling in by watching the movement of the trees. Sure enough, within seconds of clearing the treetops they could see the trees rustling violently off to the far right.

* * *

Zebulon Avery had draped himself casually over one of the horsehair chairs that occupied the Room of Requirement. He was calmly shredding a three foot essay that Lily had written describing the different antidotes for various poisons, while Crabbe and Goyle searched the other students' bags for the book their lord and master tasked them with retrieving.

"Hurry up you two," Avery ordered as he dropped the shredded essay onto the floor and started on one of James's essays. "The Dark Lord will not be happy if we keep him waiting much longer."

Crabbe grunted in reply as he dumped Jenn's bag and tossed the books aside one by one. Goyle ripped a text book as he flung Sirius' bag aside in frustration. Turning he caught a glimpse of a small emerald green book poking out from under one of the chairs. Leaning down he pulled the book out and glanced at the title.

"Found something have you Goyle?" Zebulon asked as he pushed himself upright in the chair. "Hand it here."

After passing the book to Avery, Goyle stepped back and watched the other seventh year examine the find. Zebulon turned the book over and glimpsed the title _Harry Potter and the Serpent's Choice._ Frowning he opened the book, but after flipping through a few pages saw that the book was completely blank.

"This is nothing," Avery snapped in disgust as he tossed the book into the fireplace. Heaving himself to his feet he began pacing back and forth in the little room. "Well? What are you waiting for? Get back to work!"

Crabbe and Goyle stared at him stupidly for a few moments before they turned back to the book bags on the floor and continued their search. Stopping beside the fire, Zebulon felt his anger rise, certain that Pettigrew had misled him somehow. Turning he watched as the other two made a bigger mess in their search for the book.

Suddenly he had an idea. Slowly an evil smile crept over his face as he glanced around the room. Turning back he ordered the others to stop what they were doing and clean everything back up.

"But..." Goyle started when Zebulon interrupted.

"Just do it. We're going to plan a little party for when they return," Avery ordered.

Silently, Crabbe and Goyle began picking up each item and shoving them carelessly back into the nearest bag. Once everything was picked up Zebulon led them over to the bathroom doors and shoved the other two through the door before he followed them inside. He instructed the other two to make themselves comfortable and to be silent while they waited for the Marauders or the girls to return to the room. Before closing the door, Zebulon glanced a last time around the room to insure everything was as it should be. Smiling, he slowly closed the door waiting for one of the other students to show him where the book was hidden.

* * *

Dumbledore lay still and quiet in the bed where he had been placed on arriving at the hospital wing. He had not awoken once since being brought in. His heart beat weakly, but steadily as he slept on. Madam Pomfrey had done all she could for the Headmaster's heart and only time would tell if he would recover fully or not. He was no longer in danger of dying, but he was still far too weak.

Bustling around the hospice Madam Pomfrey kept a close watch on Dumbledore as she tried to tend to James's wound. The infection had gone too long untended for a quick fix though and the dark curse that created the wound was only complicating matters. This meant that James's wound would have to be watched closely to insure the boy didn't lose the leg or worse, his life.

After boiling some water, Madam Pomfrey cleaned the wound of all dirt and began the agonizing process of draining away the puss that had built up from the onset of the infection. While she worked she kept a close watch on James's temperature and monitored his heart rate. Several times she paused in her work to administer a strengthening potion to both James and Dumbledore.

Lori watched silently from where she sat beside Jenn. It had been several hours since Professor McGonagall and Sirius had left in search of Lily and Remus. Turning her attention from Madam Pomfrey and James she gazed out the nearby window and prayed that Lily was alright. After several minutes her thoughts turned to her other friend sleeping fitfully in the bed beside her.

Lori frowned as she recalled the site of Jenn's eyes earlier that night. While the potion the healer used soothed the pain of the burns, it was uncertain that the potion could repair Jenn's eye sight fully. Madam Pomfrey had sounded sure of it, but Lori had seen the small flicker of doubt in her eyes before the healer walked away to tend her other patients.

Shaking herself from the dark thoughts that plagued her, Lori turned back to watch Madam Pomfrey working on James once more. She had offered to help the healer earlier but was asked to watch over the sleeping Jenn instead. Lori felt a certain worry that she was kept away because the healer feared James would not make it through the night.

Forcing her thoughts away from James she thought back to the events of the last few days; of the six friends locked in the Room of Requirement, of the future that had been revealed to them through the two Harry Potter books, and of the terrible things that had happened since the first book had been found. She also thought of the good times the six of them had shared cooped up in that room, o the new spells they had shared with each other of the secrets they had learned of each other and of how close they had grown to each of the others.

Smiling sadly Lori was turning to check on Jenn when a single thought flittered across her mind. Raising her eyes she stared at a point beyond the ceiling at which she looked. Looking instead to where the Room of Requirement would be if she could see through walls like Mad-Eye could. Frowning she began to wonder if the book would change again now that Monica had been killed by the Death Eaters. She also began to worry if the book would be safe up there or if she should retrieve it and keep it with her.

The more she thought about it, the more she felt it would be best if she went to get the book. After a quick look to make sure Jenn was doing alright, Lori stood up and walked softly to the door. Carefully she opened the door and slipped out while Madam Pomfrey was busy tending to James.

Quickly she turned to the stairs and began climbing up towards seventh floor, and the Room of Requirement.

* * *

Lily struggled to pull herself higher into the old oak tree as the crashing noise became louder as the beast drew closer to her part of the forest. Desperate to get higher, she clutched at a nearby branch and screamed as it broke under her weight. Slipping downward she panicked and frantically grabbed at the branch she sat on. Thankfully, she stopped sliding and was able to regain her balance. Closing her eyes she tried to clam her racing heart and fight back the fear that was rising in her mind as she heard another howl pierce the night air.

Pushing herself into a standing position she reached for a sturdier branch just above her and caught a glimpse of the forest floor far below her. Terror paralyzed her as she stared at the ground below. Lily forgot everything except the earth that was so far below her. As she stared downward, the ground seemed to fall even further away. In her fear frozen mind the tree grew rapidly higher; pushing her further from the safety of solid ground she had left so willingly a few moments ago. So caught up in the terror that over whelmed her, Lily never heard the werewolf break through the nearby bushes.

The werewolf howled in triumph when it caught site of the girl standing in the tree before it. It bounded forward and stared up into the branches and growled hungrily as it reached upward with deadly claws for the woman who stood only a few short feet above his head.

* * *

Mrs. Norris padded silently down the hall and turned the corner, just up ahead was the open door of Filch's office. In her mouth she still carried the limp body of a rat. Speeding up, she darted through the open door, immediately jumped up onto a chair, and then on top of the caretaker's desk. Filch jumped back in surprise as she dropped the dying rat on top of several detention notices he had been in the process of filling out.

"What have we here?" Filch asked as he slowly stroked Mrs. Norris and studied the seemingly lifeless rodent on his desk. "Bah, nothing but a filthy dead rat."

Picking up the rat by the scruff of its neck he turned to drop it into a dustbin beside the desk when Mrs. Norris suddenly mewed loudly. With the rat in hand hovering over the dustbin Filch turned to study his cat. After a few moments Mrs. Norris mewed again, louder. Nodding Filch stood up and dropped the rodent into a small cage he kept in the back of his office. Closing the door of the cage firmly he slipped a small lock in place and set the cage on his desk.

He then turned and swept the detention slips off the desk into the top drawer before slipping on his tattered coat and picking the cage up once more. As Filch stepped outside his office, he carefully checked to see that he had his keys in his coat pocket before firmly locking the door.

Mumbling to himself he started off in the direction of the hospital wing carelessly swinging the cage with every step. Mrs. Norris followed dutifully behind him licking her lips as her eyes continuously followed the progress of the rat with each swing of the cage.

* * *

Lori stepped off the top most stair onto the seventh floor of the castle and looked around before hurrying along the hall towards the Room of Requirement. She was just beginning to form a picture of the room as she last saw it in preparation to calling the room into reality when she noticed that the door was sitting open.

Frowning she stopped and stood watching the door as a feeling of apprehension grew inside her. Remus had closed the door when they had left the room earlier. _Hadn't he?_ Cautiously she moved a bit closer and pulled out her wand as she tried to peer into the room without stepping inside. Everything _looked_ the same, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right. Lori stood there for several minutes as she debated with herself about what to do, the fear licking at the back of her mind as she became acutely aware of how alone she was.

Making up her mind, she silently stepped closer and pushed the door a tiny bit praying that it wouldn't squeak and give her away. Peering further inside of the room, it appeared as if nothing had been moved as her eyes swept over all of their belongings that were piled near the chairs. She studied the room again as doubt crept into her thoughts. Something was out of place. She felt it. She checked each chair in turn and then the floor. Near one chair she saw a few pieces of shredded parchment, but didn't think anything of it.

Nudging the door open a bit further, she slipped carefully inside the room making sure that the door remained open in case she needed to escape quickly. Once inside she froze and held her wand at the ready as she searched the corners of the room. Satisfied that all appeared safe she moved several steps into the room before she stopped once more.

Her misgivings began to grow as she glanced about the room again. Something was out of place. Then is struck her what was missing. _Where was the book?_ They had left it stuffed partially under the chair when the professors had approached them in regards to Monica's whereabouts.

* * *

"This way, Black," Professor McGonagall ordered as she angled her broom in the direction of the rampaging werewolf. Sirius followed right behind her and slightly lower, so he had a clear view of the forest trees passing beneath him. Pushing the brooms slightly faster they were able to close with the werewolf in a matter of seconds as the beast burst into the clearing where they hoped had taken refuge in a tree.

Pulling up on the brooms they hovered just out of reach of the irate werewolf and tried to pinpoint where Lily was hiding. Sirius let his broom drift slightly lower as he searched the branches of the nearest tree where the werewolf had been hovering just as they arrived.

"Black, get back here!" McGonagall called out as she caught sight of what he was doing.

Sirius ignored her as he angled the broom closer to the tree and caught sight of Lily standing frozen with-in its branches. She wasn't high enough.

"Lily!" Sirius called out to her. "Lily, look at me!"

Lily shook her head no as she continued to stare at the ground which by now seemed miles away. Sirius swore softly and then landed his broom beside her in the tree. Climbing off he grabbed Lily by the shoulders and forced her to look him in the face.

"Lily, you have to leave now, McGonagall will help you, but you have to go and go now!" Sirius whispered fiercely before calling out to McGonagall. "Professor, I have Lily, but I can't get her out of here. She's terrified of heights. Can you come lower and help her onto your broom?"

As Sirius called out the werewolf howled again in frustration and began scrambling at the tree as if it was trying to climb up its trunk.

Sirius turned to look down at what was once his best friend and gritted his teeth in determination. He knew Remus couldn't help what he became and he would not let Remus suffer because of the werewolf's instincts to hunt the flesh of humans. Without waiting to see if McGonagall was coming or not, Sirius jumped from the tree and transformed in midair. Crashing into the werewolf with the force of a small car, Sirius the dog fought and pushed the werewolf away from the tree where Lily was trapped.

Professor McGonagall was just coming down even with Lily when she had caught sight of Sirius launch himself from the tree. She gasped as she saw him transform into a large black dog and knock down the werewolf. Without waiting to see how the fight turned out she landed beside Lily and coaxed her onto the broom in front of herself. Together they rose up and out of the tree.

"Keep your eyes closed, Evans. We will be back on the ground soon enough."

Lily nodded weakly and closed her eyes tightly as she felt a queasiness invade her stomach as the broom soared up into the sky beyond the treetops.

Down below the werewolf broke away from the fight and ran off into the woods while the big black dog watched tiredly for a few moments before it turned and headed back to the tree. After a quick glance around Sirius changed back into himself and climbed the tree to retrieve his broom.

Mounting it gingerly, he tiredly pushed up into the sky and turned around to follow Professor McGonagall and Lily back to the castle.

* * *

**AN:** _Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone! I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I hope to have chapter 14 up before New Years along with a one-shot sequel to A Slytherin Ending titled 'A Gryffindor Conundrum', but it depends on if I can get the edits for both finished up between now and then. I will at least have chap 14 done. =)_

_Also, for those of you reading this series, I have a poll on my author's page regarding the missing moments from the series and would like my reader's input as to when they'd like to see them posted. I will leave the poll open until New Years day. – Jenn_


	14. Frantic Chaos

**DISCLAIMER: **_ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 14: Frantic Chaos**

Opening the doors of the hospital wing Filch strode in still swinging the cage that contained the half dead rat. Madam Pomfrey looked up and immediately started yelling at Filch.

"You take that filthy thing out of here immediately! You've no business bringing such filth into a hospital, sir!"

"Where is Professor McGonagall?" Filch asked as he ignored Madam Pomfrey's attempts to shoo him out the door.

"Not here, and she wouldn't thank you for bringing that creature in here either!" Madam Pomfrey replied indignantly.

Filch frowned and glanced around the hospital for himself. When he didn't see the Professor he headed out and mutter to himself about coming back later.

Madam Pomfrey followed close behind and slammed the door shut and locked it tightly. She was tired of people barging in and out of her ward without so much as a by-your-leave. Huffing to herself she bustled back to her patients and made sure they were comfortable before she shuffled off to her office still huffing to herself about unsavory manners.

In her rant she never noticed that Lori had left the hospital wing.

* * *

James felt himself drifting in a cloud of haze. He didn't know where he was but something was worrying him in the back of his mind. He felt there was some urgent reason for not lying around all day, but he just couldn't remember what was so important.

Slowly he opened his eyes and tried to focus on where he was. For a moment he couldn't figured out why everything was so blurry, then he realized he wasn't wearing his glasses. After searching for several minutes he found them sitting on the table beside the bed. Putting them on, he pulled himself up a bit and looked around a second time.

He was in the hospital wing. That's funny; the last thing he remembered was falling asleep in the woods with Lily. _Lily!_ _Where was Lily?_

Struggling he sat up all the way and scanned the nearby beds. Frowning, he didn't see anyone at all in the two closest to him and two beds down from his own was what looked like an old man sleeping. Shaking his head he pushed himself up higher and was just slipping his feet over the edge of the bed in order to stand when Madam Pomfrey came bustling out of her office and saw he was awake and attempting to escape.

"You are not to be out of bed yet young man, you're still recovering from a nasty infection," she ordered sharply as she hurried over to his side, pushed James back down on the bed, and drew the blankets back up before feeling his forehead. "Goodness me, you're still burning with fever. Just wait here, I need to get a couple of potions to help you fight the fever."

James frowned as he lay back in the bed and tried to remember what had happened after he found Lily in the forest. He looked up as Madam Pomfrey padded into view and tried to ask her. "Madam Pomfrey, where is Li-" But found him self cut off in mid-sentence by a bottle of potion that was given to him.

"Plenty of time for questions later, Mr. Potter, rest now," Madam Pomfrey interjected as she gave him yet another dose of the sleeping draught.

James felt himself drifting back to sleep unable to fight against the pull of the potion.

Madam Pomfrey watched him for several minutes before she turned to put the potion away. As she passed by the other beds in the hospital she felt a bothersome twinge of concern that was telling her one of her patients had slipped out from under her care without permission and frowned as she stopped in place to count the occupied beds around the ward. Finding all three patients present and accounted for, she shrugged her shoulders and pushed the worry from her mind as she continued about her work.

* * *

Lori frowned as she searched quickly for the book. The longer she searched the room the more certain she grew that the book had been moved from where it had been hidden beneath the chair. Suddenly nervous, she wiped the palms of her hands dry and gripped her wand more firmly. Instinctively, she threw up a Bubble-Shield with a non-verbal incantation and waited for the shield to solidify around her before she slowly inched further into the room in the direction of the chairs.

As she neared them, she saw several jagged pieces of parchments scattered over the floor. Thinking the scraps were out of place, she carefully checked her immediate surroundings before reaching down and picking up the nearest bit. One glance at the neat writing sprawled across the scrap was enough for her to recognize Lily's elegant quill work. A second glance identified the parchment as being torn from one of Lily's recently written essays.

Lori was now certain that someone had stumbled across the room since she had left with Remus just a few short hours earlier. Edging silently closer to the group of chairs, Lori scanned beneath each of the seats for the book. Still, she found nothing but more shorn pieces of Lily's ruined essay.

She was just turning towards the fireplace to search the hearth when she heard one of the bathroom doors creak open. Whipping around as fast as she could, she helplessly watched as three beams of red shot out at her from the wands of three very familiar faces. The spells splashed against her shield less than a heartbeat later and Lori thanked her ancestors that she'd thought to shield herself as a precaution or she would have been stunned or cursed where she stood.

Backing quickly behind one of the chairs she dropped her shield and returned fire, her jinx striking Goyle on the knee which caused him to trip over his own feet. Avery kicked his fallen companion out of his way as she ducked back down behind the furniture as another pair of stunning spells impacted the chair shielding her from the others.

"All you have to do is give us the book and we will let you be, Mudblood," Zebulon hissed angrily as he shot another stunning curse at the chair where Lori was hiding.

"I will give you nothing, jerk!" Lori snarled back as she glanced to either side of her position in order to locate a safe exit route.

As she glanced towards the fireplace, she caught a flash of green out of the corner of her eye. Before she could get a closer look though, she was forced to roll to the left as part of the chair she was hiding behind exploded when it was hit with a high powered blasting curse. Hissing sharply over the pain of a dozen splinters impaling her left arm and side of her chest, she crawled behind the next undamaged chair while throwing a hex of her own back at her attackers while she was between the two pieces of furniture.

She then gave a quick glance at the fireplace to determine if she had seen what she thought she'd seen and easily recognized the sparkling green cover of the book partially buried among the ashes. Grinning fiercely, she reapplied her shield and dashed towards the fireplace to retrieve the book; unexpectedly startling the two Slytherins still on their feet with her unanticipated charge.

Two simultaneous spells were then absorbed as the body-bind Crabbe fired and the leg-locker curse Avery had sent hit the blue shield. A third spell impacted it several seconds later; that spell having been fired from the recovered Goyle.

Avery was growing impatient and frustrated with the failed ambush and unplanned battle. Hoping to catch the wench off guard, he resorted to using an unforgivable in place of harmless spells and jinxes. "_Crucio_," he screamed out with a vicious sneer.

Lori watched with undisguised horror as the yellow light of the spell flew towards her. To everyone's shock, and Lori's stunned relief, the spell was absorbed by the bubble-shield the moment in connected with the swirl of blue energy that surrounded her. The power of the curse however shattered the shield just a second later as Lori dove for the book still smoldering in the ashes of the fireplace.

The moment the book was in her hand, she rolled back onto her feet and dashed back towards the door. She was just a half dozen steps away from exiting when she was tripped up by Goyle's leg-locker curse that he'd fired at as her as she passed in front of him.

She hit the floor hard but rolled over quickly onto her back so she could fire a bubble-curse at Goyle before rolling onto her side and sending the bat-cape curse at Crabbe. This bought her enough time to use the counter for the leg-locker spell on herself. She just barely made it back to her feet when Avery sent a second curse at her.

"_Crucio_."

This time the full force of the curse hit her and she fell a second time as pain racked her entire body for several long minutes. As soon as the curse ended and her pain ebbed just enough for her to clear her mind, she rolled over and threw up a weak shield up to protect herself as she struggled to get back onto her feet.

The shield wavered for a moment as a strong a stunning spell hit it, but thankfully the red light was reflected back at her attacker this time. She grimaced as she watched the spell miss hitting Avery in the face as the other teen ducked at the last minute while the chair behind him took the full force of the jinx and was set afire.

Taking advantage of the brief respite, Lori scooped up the book she had dropped while under the torture curse and dashed out of the room as fast as she could despite the after tremors that were wracking her body.

"After her you stupid fools!" Avery screeched to the others as he caught sight of her fleeing out the door.

* * *

Professor McGonagall turned the broom around in mid-air and watched as Sirius speed towards her from out of the woods. She frowned at him for a moment until she heard Lily whimper in her arms. Turning back towards the castle once more, McGonagall set a slow and steady pace as she listened to the cries of the werewolf fade into the night. As she flew back towards the castle she decided that she wouldn't bring up the matter of Sirius's illegal Animagus ability.

If the boy hadn't broken the law then Lily could have been bitten, or killed that night. She also knew that if Sirius was able to transform, then Potter was able to as well. If it turned out that Peter was one too; then she would have to address the matter with the Headmaster if – no _when_ he recovered.

Lily sat there holding tight as she felt the wind rushing by her face with her eyes tightly closed she tried to think of something other then the queasy feeling in her stomach. For several minutes she struggled against the urge to panic and slowly she felt herself relax enough to enjoy the feeling of the wind rushing through her hair.

Still not brave enough to open her eyes, Lily instead let a soft smile slip onto her face and leaned into the rushing wind. Feeling a since of freedom she had never felt before due to her fear of falling. All too soon, however, Professor McGonagall was setting the broom down on the steps of the school and telling Lily to climb off the broom.

As Lily stepped tenderly onto the ground Sirius landed beside her and climbed off his broom looking nervously at Professor McGonagall for some reason. The Professor just steadied Lily with one hand and then walked on ahead to the doors.

"Lily…" Sirius began.

"Sirius…" Lily interrupted.

Suddenly they both laughed and Lily gave Sirius a tight hug in silent thanks before they walked up into the school behind Professor McGonagall. Professor McGonagall studied them for several minutes before she sent them off to the hospital wing while she went in search of Hagrid.

Lily and Sirius watched Professor McGonagall hurry away before they turned and slowly began to climb the stairs leading up to the hospital wing.

"Ugh, I hate the thought of walking up all those stairs," Lily muttered under her breath as she took a few wobbly steps towards the main staircase. When she reached the base, she stopped walking and leaned against the banister to take some of the weight off her aching feet and legs.

"I suppose we could fly up to the hospital wing," Sirius replied with a slight smirk on his face. "You should have seen the look on Madam Pomfrey's face when Moody and I flew into the ward earlier with James."

"How is he doing, Sirius? Will he be ok?" Lily asked tentatively as she grabbed Sirius by the arm the moment the other teen stepped up beside her.

"He is going to be just fine, Lily," Sirius replied sincerely as he tenderly patted her hand. "Jenn will be fine too."

"What do you mean Jenn will be fine too? What happened to Jenn?" Lily demanded fearfully.

"She was badly burned during the battle with the Death Eaters. She's only woken up once or twice since then, but she was resting easier when I left. Lori was sitting with her keeping an eye on her when I left to come find you," Sirius replied softly.

"Oh my god, I didn't know. I never bothered to make sure everyone was alright. I feel so awful, I should have checked. It's entirely my fault. None of this would have happened if..."

Sirius grabbed her by both arms as his broom clattered to the ground. He turned her to face him and gave her a gentle shake. "Lily, listen to me. Jenn would never want you to blame yourself. James would never accuse of forgetting your friends. Never. You can't allow yourself to wallow in self pity over any of this. Not your sister's death, not Monica's death, not your parent's death. None of it! Do you hear me?"

Sirius waited for her to answer and stared into her eyes as they filled with tears that began to pour down her face. "Oh, Lily," Sirius cried softly as he pulled her close while she sobbed. "Everything will be fine. Come on, dry your eyes. James, Jenn, and Lori are waiting for us."

Lily nodded against his shirt and brought her hands up to wipe away her tears. Together they climbed the last few stairways and stood in front of the hospital wing door. Sirius looked at Lily and she nodded slightly before they continued up the stairs to the hospital ward. They found the door locked firmly and after a moment of puzzlement they knocked loudly.

* * *

McGonagall hurried quickly into the Great Hall, walking between the empty house tables and out again through the teachers entrance. Turning left she entered a short set of stairs and started down. Halfway to the bottom she bumped into the very person she was looking for, and was knocked backwards.

"Professor McGonagall is yeh a 'right?" Hagrid asked as he pulled her back up to her feet by a handful of her cloak.

McGonagall shooed Hagrid back when he tried to help brush off the dust that clung to her cloak. "I'm fine Hagrid." McGonagall replied as she took a moment to catch her breath. "I needed to talk to you though."

"Glad yeh are all right. I came to tell yeh tha there's been a werewolf loose in the forest this evenin'. With all tha's been goin' on I was afraid this might 'appen."

"You've seen him in the woods then?" McGonagall asked.

"Nah, heard it from one o' the centaurs," Hagrid replied. "I thought I'd let yeh know where I was goin' fore I left to go track 'em down though."

"Ah, I was actually coming to speak with you about said werewolf," McGonagall stated. "Mr. Lupin was caught off guard and out of the shack tonight. Be careful out there, Hagrid."

"Good kid, that Lupin, terrible shame he's been cursed though. I'll keep an eye on tha lad and bring 'em up in tha mornin'. And, Don' you worry 'bout me none, I'll be fine," Hagrid said as he patted Professor McGonagall on the back a little too hard.

After a quick goodbye they both went on their way. McGonagall headed back up to the hospital, and Hagrid to fetch Fang and his crossbow so he could track down the school's resident werewolf to be sure he wasn't causing too much grief or getting himself into too much trouble.

* * *

Madam Pomfrey peeked out from her office at the sound of someone knocking on the entrance door of the Hospital. She frowned for several moments while she debated on opening the door. All day there had been a series of outrageous disturbances with-in the hospital; from Remus' mad rush when Dumbledore had been found to Sirius and Moody flying in on brooms with an unconscious James Potter between them. Finally, at the sound of a third knock she decided she would see who was out there and if it was Filch returning with that vile creature she would turn his ears inside out to teach him a lesson.

"Coming! Coming!" She called out as the knocking came a fourth time as she made her way across the room.

She took a deep breath and took her wand out as she unlocked the door and leaned out to see who was disturbing her this time. She was startled to find Lily Evans and Sirius Black standing before the ward covered in cuts and bruises and no small amount of blood in former's case. Frowning she took in their filthy appearance before she grudgingly allowed them to enter the hospital.

"What have you two been into now to come back in such a condition?" Madam Pomfrey demanded. But before they could answer she spoke again. "Well, no matter, follow me so I can get you cleaned up yet again."

"Madam Pomfrey, can you tell me how James is doing? Please?" Lily asked nervously when the healer had stopped speaking.

"He is fine child, sit here please," Madam Pomfrey replied as she stopped beside the nearest empty pair of beds. She turned to tell Sirius to have a seat as well, but he was no longer beside Lily.

The moment he had stepped inside the ward his eyes had searched out Jenn. Seeing that she was alone he had moved quickly to her side and was soon holding her hand in his. Madam Pomfrey frowned, but said nothing as she began healing Lily's various bruises and scrapes with several waves of her wand while searching for the wound responsible for all of the blood.

Lily said nothing as the Healer worked. Instead she let her eyes wander over the occupied beds glancing from James to Jenn and finally to a bed on the far side of James. She couldn't see who it was, but knew it was an adult from the person's size. She would have to ask Sirius who it was later.

Madam Pomfrey finished healing Lily's wounds and handed her a white gown to change into so her clothes could be cleaned and mended; setting up a screen for her to change behind. The healer then bustled over to where Sirius was sitting beside Jenn.

As Lily changed she listened to Madam Pomfrey complaining steadily about Sirius being wounded so soon after she had last healed him. Sirius seemed to be joking about his various scratches and cuts until Madam Pomfrey asked how he had gotten them. He steadfastly refused to answer the question and instead asked where Lori was at.

"Who? Oh, Lori. She was here with Miss Parksen…" Madam Pomfrey started to reply before she turned and searched the ward for the missing student. Frowning she recalled the stray thought she had pushed aside after the caretaker had left; Miss Wilson had been missing since Filch had stormed out looking for McGonagall.

Lily stepped out from behind the screen and met Sirius's worried look when Madam Pomfrey didn't finish her answer. Sirius stood up so quickly that he startled Madam Pomfrey who gave a little shriek and jumped back. Sirius headed straight for James and was digging through his pockets while Madam Pomfrey sputtered in outrage behind him.

"What do you think you are doing, Mr. Black?" she demanded.

"Looking," Sirius muttered in reply as he continued to search.

"Sirius," Lily called as she lifted an old worn parchment from her pocket. She waited for Sirius to look at her before she showed him the paper and simply said. "I have it."

Sirius bounded over to Lily's side and together they opened it to reveal the map of Hogwarts still in place. Lily had forgotten to wipe it clear when she had used it earlier. Scanning the various classrooms and halls of the castle they quickly found the dot labeled Lori darting down the stairs leading from the seventh floor.

Sirius swore angrily when he caught sight of the three dots that pursued her; Avery, Crabbe, and Goyle. Storming towards the door he was about to open it when Madam Pomfrey forced herself between him and the door.

"You are not going anywhere boy. I have become tired of patching you up every five minutes; you will stay here and rest up properly."

Sirius's face turned ugly as he stood there glaring at the Healer. Lily rushed up to his side and whispered softly to him for several seconds before she turned to speak to the healer.

"You are very right, Madam Pomfrey, we all need rest. You have had your hands full this year with all the battles and not to mention the usual illnesses and school pranks. I never fully appreciated all that you do for us students," Lily spoke softly and sincerely to the healer, all the while drawing the matron's attention from Sirius to herself in an effort to help Sirius get free to rescue Lori. "I have often wanted to learn the Healing arts, but cannot seem to master even the most basic of healing charms. Please, tell me, how are James and Jenn doing? I have been so worried about both of them."

As Madam Pomfrey began speaking of her charges recovery to Lily, Sirius stood slightly stunned watching Lily in action. When she briefly turned back to catch his eye she winked and jerked her head the tiniest bit to remind him of what he was about. After a quick salute he slipped through the door and quietly shut it behind him.

* * *

**AN:** _HAPPY NEW YEAR FOLKS! Hope you've enjoyed the chapter! I'll have the next one up as soon as I can, but no promises as to when since the holidays are nearly over and I'll soon be back at the grindstone. On the other hand, I hope to have the sequel to A Slytherin Ending up before school is back in session for the girls – so sometime this next week for sure! (I hope.) – Jenn_


	15. From out of the Darkness

**DISCLAIMER:** _ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 15: From out of the Darkness**

After he had been tossed out of the hospital wing by Madam Pomfrey, Filch had angrily stomped back up to his office. When he stood before the door he leaned close to the handle and squinted at it for several minutes before he tentatively tested it with one finger. When he was sure that there was nothing on the handle he took out his key and unlocked the door.

Pushing open the door he glanced around suspiciously for several more seconds, almost as if he fully expected to be attacked in his own office. Once he was satisfied all was safe he dumped the cage holding the injured rat onto a chair beside his desk and moved around it to sit down.

Grumbling incoherently under his breath he took out the detention slips he had been working on earlier and settled down to finish them. He quickly filled in several with student names, houses, and years before setting them aside once more.

Frowning he glanced over to the cage where it sat propped on the chair and leaned back a bit in his seat. Mrs. Norris chose that moment to jump onto the desk and meow softly at him. Filch nodded as if he understood and silently stroked her back and tail.

Mrs. Norris, enjoying the attention twisted and turned continuously butting her head against Filch's hand any time he slowed in his affections. When she was satisfied with the attention she meowed once more and lightly jumped to the floor. With the sensual grace of her kind she slipped from the office and silently padded down the hall to the staircase. At the top of the stairs she sat and stared intently as if she waited for someone.

* * *

Hagrid walked confidently through the forest, a twinkling of stars flickering through the leaves and limbs of the trees. Fang, his boar hound, paced silently beside him.

He had been tracking the werewolf for over an hour now and still had seen no trace of it save for the scattering of footprints he was now following. While most humans would be terrified of being in the forest alone with a werewolf, Hagrid had no fear of any creature. As a matter of fact, the bigger and meaner the animal, the more Hagrid was apt to like it.

Whistling softly to himself the half giant continued to move deeper into the forest. From somewhere up a head he heard a whimper and a growl. Beside him fang dropped back and whined softly as Hagrid stopped his whistling and listened to the night sounds for several minutes.

Carefully he moved forward and peered around the tree and studied the beast that lay on the ground before him. There curled up in the rotten leaves that littered the forest floor was Remus, the werewolf. Hagrid watched grimly as the werewolf scratched and chewed at his own body in a fit of frustration. From where he stood Hagrid could also make out several long cuts along the werewolf's back and neck, as if some large dog had attacked the wolf.

Glancing up at the sky briefly the Grounds Keeper of Hogwarts gauged that there were only a few hours left until dawn and settled back to keep watch over the werewolf until the morning light transformed the hapless beast back into his true self.

* * *

Lori dashed through the hall and turned down the first set of stairs she came across, the sounds of her attackers bumbling down the hall behind her in pursuit echoing loudly through the deserted stone corridor. In a rush of desperation she began jumping stairs as she ran down them. Leaping them in groups of two's and three's in an effort to put as much distance between herself and those who followed.

As she jumped the final step she turned to her left and ran recklessly down the hall heedless of the statues and suits of armor that lined the corridor. Desperately she searched for an alternate hallway she could turn down and use to double back to the stairs and slip around Avery and his goons.

Up ahead on her left she saw what she thought was another hall and she turned into it only to find herself in an old discarded classroom. Panicking she twisted herself around and dashed back to the doorway only to see the forms of Avery, Crabbe, and Goyle barreling along the hallway. Furious with herself for ending up in a trap of her own making, she shut the door as quickly and as quietly as she could before hurrying to the back of the classroom where a second door led to an inner office. Rushing inside she hurriedly closed and locked that door as well.

As she stepped away from the door she heard her pursuers collide into the classroom door in the other room. Glancing about the room she noticed a trap door under the window around the backside of an old battered desk. She rushed over to it and pulled it open and peered down into the darkness below. Suddenly she had an idea on how she could lose her attackers. Leaving the trapdoor wide open she quickly stood and hid behind the heavy tapestry that was hanging beside the door.

As she stepped behind the musty rug, she heard the outer door burst open in a shower of sparks and the sound of running feet as her pursuers rushed into the empty classroom. Holding her breath she waited for them to break down the office door. Sure enough they blasted their way into the small office and Avery's voice could be heard ordering the others to search the room.

"Hurry up you morons. Check the entire room."

"She had to of gone down the trapdoor, Avery," Crabbe's voice called out loudly as Lori imagined him leaning over the open trap door.

Two sets of footsteps passed by Lori's hiding place as she fought to hold her body still and silent. She guessed that must have been Avery and Goyle joining their companion at the trap door. After a few agonizing minutes, she heard Avery order Crabbe and Goyle to lead the way down into the secret room. She heard Crabbe grumbling under his breath as heavy footsteps descended down the ladder. A moment later a second set of footsteps joined the first, but she couldn't tell if Goyle had made any sort of protest as the Slytherin was without a doubt still suffering from the bubble curse Lori had used on him.

Beads of sweat began tricking down the side of Lori's face while she waited for Avery to join his companions. She imagined he was standing guard above the trapdoor while searching the rest of the office while his goon squad searched for her below.

"What do you see?" Avery's voice barked out not more than two minutes later, startling Lori with its harshness after the short stretch of silence.

"There is a passageway under here, leads off into the direction of the stairs." Crabbe's voice called.

"Hurry, follow that wretched girl before she gets away with that book!" Avery ordered as he finally made his way down the steps into the passageway below.

Lori stood silently behind the tapestry as she listened to the steps descending into the trap door. Once the footsteps had faded she peeked out from behind the tapestry and tiptoed over to the trap door. Sure enough all three had moved far enough away from the door that she couldn't even see the light from their wands.

Laughing to herself she closed the trap door with a bang and used a levitating spell to scoot the desk over the trapdoor, effectively locking the three boys in the passageway below. She was just backing into the classroom outside of the little office when she heard footsteps running down the hallway outside.

Terror and anger rushed through her as she called up the bubble shield around her and moved quickly through the unused classroom, hoping to reach the door before whoever was could trap her inside for a second time.

* * *

In an abandoned house, thousands of miles away from Hogwarts, several dark figures appeared out of nowhere with loud cracks. Ignoring the thick layer of dust that covered the floor the eight figures made their way up a staircase that was covered in cobwebs. As they reached the top of the staircase they could see the flickering light of a fire through the partially closed door. Several of the figures hesitated nervously before they took the last few steps towards the glowing doorway. The form in the lead had just raised his hand to knock, when a sibilant voice hissed out from inside the room.

"Enter."

The man closest to the door pushed it all the way open with the hand he'd intended to knock with and stepped into the light. The others followed him slowly, as if fearing for their lives.

"It is good to see you that you have returned to us," The snake like hissed when all eight were inside the room.

A woman pushed her way through from the back of the group and smiled worshipfully up at Voldemort as she dropped to her feet and bowed before her lord. Voldemort smiled coldly in return, running his eyes over the entire group before dismissing two of them with an impatient flick of his hand. As soon as the door closed behind them, the Dark Lord addressed those that remained.

"Captured. Six of my most trusted, most faithful, and most powerful servants captured, by children none-the-less. It is most distressing to know that mere children can outsmart my Death Eaters."

The woman on her knees opened her mouth to speak, but all that came out was a bright pink bubble. Voldemort's expression grew darker and the others shifted nervously as Lord Voldemort's taunts shamed them. Curling his lips in disgust Voldemort turned away from the group before ordering them to leave. Silently the six Death Eaters filed from the room, only one turned back at the doorway. Bellatrix Black hesitated for several moments before she too finally left the room.

Leaning back in his chair, Voldemort turned to watch the fireplace once more as the footsteps faded from the hallway outside his door. He anticipated the return of his three student spies any moment now. It had been close to twenty-four hours since he had sent them to retrieve the book with the rat, Wormtail. Once he had the book in his hand he would launch his attack on the prestigious school that he had once called home. And nothing would stand in his way to become the most powerful wizard in the world once the school fell.

Soft laughter filled the room and echoed down the hall.

* * *

Sirius had run upstairs from the hospital wing and paused only once as he checked the map to see where Lori and her attackers were at, and then he was pounding up the stairs again. At the sixth floor he turned in time to hear the second door blasted apart. From the map he knew that they had trapped Lori in an unused classroom office and she would be cornered.

With a burst of speed Sirius reached the sixth floor landing and hurried along the hallway towards the classroom where he was expecting to have to battle the Slytherins for the second time in two days. As he reached the classroom he pulled out his wand and barged in yelling at the top of his lungs. Only to have a startled Lori in a bubble shield called out to him as he stopped in the middle of the empty classroom and looked around.

"Sirius?"

"Huh?" Sirius questioned as he turned to see Lori behind him shielded. "What happened to Avery and his goons?"

"They got sidetracked," Lori giggled as she released her shield. "Where is Lily?"

"She's safe; I left her in the hospital with Madam Pomfrey. What are you doing here?"

"I realized the book was lying around unguarded in the Room of Requirement and went to get it, when I walked into a trap set up by Avery and the others," Lori replied as she held up the book for Sirius to see.

Sirius nodded gravely as they moved out of the classroom and started walking towards the staircase. When they got close, Sirius stopped and checked the map. He didn't see Avery anywhere on it and waved to Lori to indicate that all was safe for the moment. Together they hurried back down the stars and were nearing the hospital wing when Avery flanked by Crabbe and Goyle stepped out from behind a tapestry covered in dust and cobwebs.

For a moment all five students stared at each other in surprise. Than Avery brought his wand up and grinned evilly as he walked forward. Sirius brought his own wand up with a snap and fired off a stunning spell that Avery dodged. Lori aimed a leg-locker curse at Crabbe but it collided with a stunning spell that he had sent at her.

Desperately, Sirius pulled Lori with him behind a suit of armor as Avery ducked behind a large stone basin. Back and forth the four students fired spells after spell. Neither side gaining any advantage as the spells ricocheted off the walls and floor. Thankfully Goyle wasn't able to help because of the bubble curse or they would have been outnumbered three to two.

Sirius fired two more jinxes at the stone basin before ducking back behind the armor. He was frantically trying to think of a way to get out of there when he remembered the brooms he had left propped against the wall outside the hospital ward.

"Lori, you hold them off, I am going to summon a couple of brooms," Sirius whispered softly.

Lori nodded and after putting up a simple shield she fired several low powered fire balls at Avery and Crabbe to keep them pinned down while Sirius summoned the brooms. Dropping the shield she ducked back out of sight while Avery stumbled into the middle of the hallway trying to put out the flames, Lori used that opportunity to hex his robes into bat wings. As he was lifted by his cloak she fired a freezing curse at Crabbe and caught his wand arm in the jinx. At that moment the brooms soared into Sirius' hands and he tossed one quickly to Lori; without hesitation the two of them mounted the brooms and shot off in the direction of the hospital wing.

Avery began screaming orders at Crabbe and Goyle to follow, but Crabbe was stuck to the stone basin by the freezing spell. Goyle was trying to help free him, but none of the spells worked through each mouthful of bubbles that he spouted out. Some distance down the hall, Sirius chanced a final look back and grinned wolfishly when he caught Avery's eye glaring hatefully after them.

In no time at all Lori and Sirius were landing outside the hospital ward. Together they hid the brooms behind a nearby statue and cracked the door open just a bit to see who was inside. When Sirius couldn't find any sign of the Healer, he motioned to Lori and the two of them quietly entered the silent hospital. Closing the door behind him Sirius turned and noticed that the sky outside was beginning to lighten.

* * *

At the first signs of the dawn, Remus the werewolf began to howl in pain. Arching his back he stretched his arms towards the sky and watched as his claws shrank to fingers and the hair receded from his hands. As the first rays of light fell across his changing figure, he collapsed onto the forest floor.

From behind the tree where he waited Hagrid stirred for the first time since he had found the werewolf. Shuffling forward he leaned over the unconscious figure of Remus and checked to see that he was still breathing. Satisfied that he was alive, Hagrid gently picked him up and carried him back towards the castle. Behind him Fang gave one last whimper and trotted after the half-giant.

It took Hagrid two hours to wind his way back through the forest. He came out from the cover of the trees beside his small cottage. With just a few steps Hagrid reached his front door and leaned his crossbow against the frame as he opened the door with one hand and let Fang inside.

Shifting Remus a bit, he closed the door to his house and started back up to the castle.

* * *

Just outside of the Hogsmeade Village, Moody appeared with a small pop and looked around for several minutes before heading up to the school. The sun was just touching the edge of the horizon as he climbed up the stairs at the entrance to the castle.

Wearily he opened the great door and stepped inside as he closed the door behind him. He stood there in the entrance hall for several minutes while his eyes adjusted to the dim interior of the castle. Searching the corners of the room with his magical eye, Moody took two steps towards the stairs when he heard what sounded like someone crying in the Great Hall.

Swiveling his eye towards the room he could see somebody sitting at the staff table with their head down upon the table. Frowning Moody changed his direction and entered the Great Hall instead. As he moved closer to the sobbing figure he recognized Professor McGonagall. Moving up the isle between two tables, Moody made his way to the staff table and placed a gentle hand on McGonagall's shoulder.

"Minerva?" Moody inquired softly.

"Oh Alastor, what is going to become of Hogwarts?" McGonagall whispered through her tears. "Students being kidnapped right and left, Death Eaters running loose in the woods, a death practically inside the castle, and Dumbledore sick, maybe dying."

"Pull yourself together Minerva, the school has faced worse before and always survived. Dumbledore will recover, he will never go quietly in his sleep and you should the truth of that. You have to be strong for the students now; they need to see you as they have always seen you; strong, formidable, and unwavering in your determination. And not to mention completely stubborn when it comes to detentions."

Professor McGonagall laughed slightly through her tears at the last bit, "The Marauders have complained to you about me haven't they Alastor?"

Moody chuckled a bit as he quipped, "Of course, Minerva, they complain about everything unless they think of it first."

"True," McGonagall said as she stood up and dried her eyes. "Thank you, Alastor." Silently McGonagall grasped his hand in gratitude before she gathered her emotions and smiled.

"Now, shall we go see how the Headmaster weathered the night?" Moody asked.

"After you, Alastor," McGonagall replied graciously.

Together they walked out of the Great Hall and turned in the direction of the hospital wing.

* * *

Lily glanced up from where she sat beside James at the sound of the door closing. When she saw Lori and Sirius move into the ward she jumped to her feet and rushed over to hug Lori tightly. Sirius ignored the two girls as he moved to check on first James, seeing that he was still sleeping he moved to the other side of the hospital and sat down next to Jenn and took her hand in his. He could hear Lily and Lori whispering furiously behind him, but he didn't even try to hear what they were talking about, all of his attention was centered on Jenn's sleeping face.

"What happened to you, Lori?" Lily asked softly as the two of them moved over closer to the bed where James lay sleeping.

"I snuck into the Room of Requirement to get the book," Lori replied just as softly. "Avery and the others were already there, they had set a trap. They knew about the book as well, demanded I hand it over."

"How could they know? Unless… Peter told them about it?" Lily said nervously.

"I think they are Death Eaters, Lily," Lori insisted firmly.

"Students? You could be right. Peter was I am sure. I wonder where that little rat is. I haven't seen him show up on the map for a long time, and Dumbledore had said he went missing the same night as Monica was... was... taken," Lily whispered.

They both looked at each other for several minutes before they turned to search the hospital for any sign of the rat. Both were fearful that he might be hiding somewhere nearby, listening in on their conversation. Lily broke eye contact first and sat down beside James once more. Lori silently placed a hand on her shoulder for comfort as they both watched over the sleeping boy.

The three of them were still sitting there silently when Madam Pomfrey came out of her office to check on the patients. She studied them for a moment and when she was satisfied that none of them carried any further injuries she set about looking after those who needed her attention.

* * *

Severus Snape prowled the halls between the dungeon classrooms silently as he considered the recent turn of events. Dumbledore had announced to the entire school that a student had been taken from the castle. The next thing he knew all of the students had been ordered to their common rooms and told that they were not to leave under any circumstances. That had been almost two days ago, and still no word had been given as to when classes would resume.

Snape had been sitting silently in the corner of the Slytherin common room when he saw Avery, Crabbe and Goyle slip out of the fireplace with a small rodent in a cage. They had ignored him and stepped into the hall outside the common room and hurried off to who knew where. Snape had sat there for another several hours trying to figure out what the three could possibly be up to. Finally just before dawn he had made his way to the exit and pushed his way outside. Glancing up and down the hallway both ways he made sure the coast was clear before he moved the rest of the way into the corridor.

He had felt weird walking down the hall ways by himself. There was no noise anywhere in the castle and it bothered him greatly. Shoving aside his fears, he moved up a set of stairs and glanced around once more in case he should be spotted. When he was certain that no one was around, he moved out into the open and began climbing up yet another set of stairs. He had no idea where he was going, but he moved silently and swiftly. Soon he could hear voices ahead muttering and cursed loudly when he realized whoever they belonged to were blocking his way through and going around would take too long. Making up his mind, he stepped around a scorched suit of armor he came upon a scene of mass chaos.

Goyle was bouncing around spouting bubbles every time he tried to talk, while Crabbe was half frozen to a stone basin. Hanging above them tangled in his own cloak, was Zebulon Avery cussing and cursing as he fought his own clothes. After a quick glance Snape began using counter jinxes to free his fellow Slytherins. Avery slipped to the floor and tried to present a calm front now that he was no longer being attacked by his cloak. Crabbe was finally able to free his arm, and Goyle emitted a final green bubble before croaking out a thanks. Smiling he walked up to Snape and offered him his hand.

"Snape, right?" Avery questioned slyly.

"Yes," Snape replied oily as he grasped Avery's hand.

"How would you like to give us a hand? It would seem several Gryffindors stole a book from the Slytherin Common Room a few days ago and ten of them attacked us right now when we were trying to get it back," Avery lied easily.

"It would be my pleasure to put one over on the Gryffindors," Snape replied, his hate shining in his eyes.

"Perfect," Avery replied with cold satisfaction.

Together the four of them moved off in the direction of the Slytherin Common Room so that they could plan an attack on the Gryffindors. Snape thought he knew of a few more students who would be willing to join them in the hunt.

* * *

AN: I apologize for the long period of time between updates. I'm afraid I was kidnapped by a rapid plot bunny that hasn't let me out of my cage for more than five minutes at a time. He's had me cracking out over 5000 words a day minimum for the last 57 chapters I've written. I expect he'll be finished with me soon I hope as I've just passed the 300,000 mark on the new story. My fingers are bleeding from typing so much in three months. Anyway, I will try to get the next chapter out soon, but I might start posting a new story that isn't in need of revision just to have something to put up while I'm still working on this one when I'm not writing the new one. Either way I won't abandon this story. =) Enjoy! - Jenn


	16. Renewed Hope

**DISCLAIMER:** _ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 16: Renewed Hope**

Entering the castle from the outside courtyard, Hagrid climbed steadily up the stairs with the unconscious Lupin cradled in his arms. He was careful to avoid any of the frequently traveled halls in order to avoid running into any student who might have snuck out of their common room to roam the now empty halls. In no time at all, he had reached the hospital wing without mishap.

Shifting Lupin's body to free up one hand, Hagrid grabbed the handle and found the door locked. He tried rattling the handle to be sure and when it still didn't budge; he knocked loudly on the door. When he didn't hear an immediate response he knocked again, hard enough to rattle the doors in their frames.

An irate Madam Pomfrey unlocked the door from inside five minutes later and was preparing to give whoever was outside a piece of her mind, when Hagrid pushed past her with Lupin in his arms. The healer looked as if she would yell at Hagrid, but upon seeing the wounded teen and she closed her mouth and hurried to Hagrid's side as he placed him down on the bed next to the one where Jenn was resting.

Sirius was standing beside Lupin's bed a heartbeat later as Madam Pomfrey leaned over to inspect his wounds. Sirius paled when he saw how badly cut up his friend was and immediately blamed himself for attacking him in his effort to save Lily the night before. Sirius took a step backwards and bumped into Lily as she leaned around him to look at Remus where he lay unconscious.

She took one look at Sirius face and placed a comforting hand on his arm. Sirius smiled tightly in response and then moved so that he could sit between Jenn and Remus while both recovered. Lori sat down on the other side of Remus and watched silently as Madam Pomfrey healed his various wounds.

Lily stood there several minutes longer before she drifted back over to sit beside James. So much had happened in the last few weeks and her feelings were jumbled up in one huge mess. A month ago if someone had asked her how she felt about James Potter she would have replied without hesitation that she hated him. Now she felt drawn to him in an unexplainable way.

Sure he was immature, reckless, and had no regards for any rules; yet these last few weeks she had seen another side to him. He was caring, fiercely loyal to his friends and family, intelligent, and an amazingly talented wizard. She had always considered him handsome, but it wasn't his looks that drew her to him. It was the person he was on the inside that she had finally allowed herself to see.

Suddenly she realized that she had come to care for James as a friend. In time it might ripen into something more but for now she knew that she no longer considered him an annoyance. Smiling softly she reached down and took his hand in hers.

"How did you do it Potter?" she asked softly and to her surprise he answered back.

"Do what Evans?"

Startled Lily jerked around to look at his face and saw that his eyes were open and he was staring at her. After a moment she smiled tentatively at him and felt him squeeze her hand in response.

"How are you feeling James?" Lily asked instead.

"Better now that I have an angel by my side," James responded with a lopsided grin on his face.

Lily was about to reply with there was an outburst from the other side of the room.

"JAMES!" Sirius roared as he caught sight of his buddy's open eyes and bounded over.

Lily had to laugh at the look of pure joy on his face and quietly stepped away so that James and Sirius could have a minute to catch up on everything that had happened since the battle. Making her way over to the chair Sirius had vacated she sat down beside Jenn and gave her hand a gentle squeeze to let her know she was here.

* * *

Alastor and McGonagall were discussing the measures that would need to be taken to guard the castle as they made their way up the stars. He had brought her up to date on the escape of the prisoners and the condition of those who had been guarding them at the time. So far the news of Dumbledore's decline in health had been kept from the rest of the staff and students; they couldn't take the chance on word of his poor health getting back to Voldemort and his followers. It was only Voldemort's fear of Dumbledore's power that had kept him at bay for this long.

Together they stopped before the doors to the hospital and took a moment to order their feelings before they opened the doors and stepped inside. Glancing around the room, McGonagall quickly noticed Hagrid standing over by the windows watching Madam Pomfrey working on what appeared to be a student. McGonagall immediately knew that it was Remus Lupin that lay in the bed, for the last time she had spoken to Hagrid he had been preparing to search the forest for the boy.

She then turned her attention to the other patients and students who were sitting in the ward. With satisfaction she noticed that six students who had been involved in both of the battles this year were present. With all of them safely inside the castle she had one less worry to burden her during the next critical days. Silently she moved over and sat down near Dumbledore so she could monitor his condition while Madam Pomfrey tended the students.

Hagrid looked up at the sound of the doors closing and noticed McGonagall glance at everyone and then moved to sit down beside another patient. Pushing away from the wall he headed over to let her know that he had found Lupin without trouble.

As he moved closer to her his attention was drawn to the man sleeping soundly in the bed. When he recognized Dumbledore's face he froze and stared mesmerized by the sight of the Head Master lying helplessly in a hospital bed.

McGonagall had seen Hagrid start in her direction and was just standing up when Hagrid had caught site of Dumbledore lying in the bed. She quickly moved to his side in an effort to keep him from breaking down in front of the children but was too slow. Hagrid burst out with loud howling cries, wailing about the injustice of Dumbledore being lost to the school at a time when he was needed most.

From the other side of the room Lily, Sirius, and James jerked around in surprise while Lori paled. Madam Pomfrey dropped a potion she had been pouring for Remus at the same time as Remus pushed himself weakly up to his elbows to see what the commotion was about.

Moody jumped from where he had been standing next to the door and rushed over to help McGonagall calm the half-giant down. Complete chaos broke out as his cries continued to echo around the ward though.

* * *

As Dumbledore lay sleeping he could hear someone yelling nearby. Shifting he tried to block out the sound, but it seemed to be getting louder the longer he listened. It sounded like someone was crying. Frowning in his sleep Dumbledore wondered who could possible be bawling like that in his bedchamber.

Slowly he opened his eyes and the first thing he noticed was that he didn't have his glasses on. Reaching out to the left he searched for his glasses on the night stand that sat beside his bed. When he couldn't reach the table he rolled over slightly and squinted his eyes to see if it had gotten moved. To his surprise it wasn't there at all.

Completely confused now, he pushed himself up and tried to make sense of the blurs that shifted before him. Finally the noise became too much for him so he opened his mouth to order them to cease, when he found that he couldn't talk. Clearing his throat he tried a second time, but only managed a small squeak. Worriedly Dumbledore tried to figure out what had happened and why he felt so weak and out of sorts.

Lily stood staring at Dumbledore laying in the bed and felt a rush of guilt pour through her as she remembered the things she had said to him in the forest clearing after the murder of Monica. In spite of the things she had spoken in anger, she had always respected and admired Dumbledore. Taking a few stapes closer she looked from Dumbledore to McGonagall and back to the still figure of the Head Master.

When she looked back though, she saw that Dumbledore has been woken by Hagrid's tirade. Realizing that he would not know where he was Lily rushed swiftly to his side and gently helped him to sit up. The adults in the room were taken completely by surprise at Lily's mad dash across the room, until they too noticed that Dumbledore had awoken. The second one to reach his side was Madam Pomfrey and she quickly checked his vital signs to insure he was not under any stress before giving him a drink of water to moisten his throat.

Dumbledore waved them aside and looked around for several minutes until Lily quietly handed him his glasses from the table at the foot of the bed. Hagrid slowly stopped bawling and turned to crying silent tears of joy at seeing Dumbledore up and moving. McGonagall was wiping away a tear from the corner of her eyes as well.

Moody stood back to give the others room and let his magical eye wander over the ward to insure everything was at it should be. The other students stayed where they were, sensing that Lily needed a few minutes to reconcile with Dumbledore after her accusations from the other night. They could hear her sobbing slightly as she choked out an apology.

"Oh Professor I am so sorry, I never should have said those things I did," Lily sobbed out as she reached for Dumbledore's hand.

"There, there child," Dumbledore murmured gently as he reached out to brush a tear from her face. "I never thought you intended to hurt me, you were rightly upset of what had happened. Do not cry, Miss Evans."

Silently Lily nodded as she continued to hold Dumbledore's hand for a few moments longer. She managed to give him a small smile as she stood up and moved back to let McGonagall sit next to Dumbledore. As Lily backed away Moody stepped up beside her and patted her awkwardly on the shoulder before he moved closer so that he may inform Dumbledore of the events that had brought the Head Master to the hospital wing.

Lily turned then and made her way back to James side where she curled up in a chair and rested her head in her arms. James watched her worriedly while Sirius stood up and walked over to stand near Dumbledore.

Everyone's spirit was considerable lighter now that Dumbledore was awake and regaining his health. Only Remus and Jenn stilled slept on, oblivious to everything that was going on around them. Remus would not be expected to wake until that evening due to the sleeping potion Madam Pomfrey gave him shortly after seeing to the Head Master. Lily and Sirius were worried about Jenn though; she should have been awake long before James. Lori had told them how she had woken up sometime the night before and that she was given a potion for her injuries. Lori didn't want to worry the others with the details, so she didn't mention the fact that Jenn's eyes had been so badly damaged by the fire.

As the afternoon wore on and the sun began sinking once more beyond the horizon, Madam Pomfrey ordered all the students to bed so that their various injuries would heal more completely. Silently and without protest each of them curled up and within moments were sound asleep.

* * *

From her position at the top of the stairs Mrs. Norris had seen Professor McGonagall and Moody making their way to the hospital ward. Silently she padded back into Filch's office and wound her way to his feet. Stretching out to her full length she dug her claws gently into his leg to get his attention. Once he noticed that she was there she meowed loudly once and headed back towards the door.

Silently Filch stood up and picked up the cage holding the rat from the chair where it had sat for most of the night. Limping slowly to the door, his body cramped from having sat in one place for so long, Filch carefully checked that he had his key before locking the door. Following Mrs. Norris he headed up the stairs to the Hospital wing once more swinging the cage gently back and forth.

As he neared the hospital he heard someone hollering and crying about something, but he couldn't make out the person's voice too well through the stone walls. Remembering Madam Pomfrey's tirade from earlier he decided to wait outside until whoever was in there left for the day. Madam Pomfrey was one of the few staff members who could intimidate the old caretaker.

It took close to an hour before Hagrid opened the door to the hospital and cheerfully brushed past a startled Filch on his way down to the village for a drink. Filch gathered himself together and was about to step inside the hospital when Moody stepped out and closed the door.

Moody glanced at the care taker for only a second and was about to move on when his magical eye caught sight of the dying rat in the cage. He stopped and turned back to face Filch before he reopened the hospital doors and called for Minerva to step outside for a moment. As she stepped outside the ward, Moody beckoned McGonagall to follow him as he took the cage from an astonished Filch's hands and headed to a nearby empty classroom.

Once inside he closed the door and set an Imperturbable Charm on the door to insure that they couldn't be overheard. He walked over to the dusty desk and set the cage down on top of it and waited for McGonagall to join him.

"What is it Alastor?"

Moody didn't reply, but pointed instead to the battered rat inside the cage. McGonagall frowned and turned to study the rat. At the first glance she dismissed the creature as a simple rat, but before she informed Moody of that she took a second, closer look at the rat. Recognition flittered in her eyes briefly before she faced Moody once more.

"Where was he found?"

"Don't know; I saw the caretaker with him just now though and from the looks of it he has been beaten and tortured pretty badly. Do you know who it is?"

"No, but there is one way to find out," McGonagall replied as she pulled her wand out of her robes and pointed it at the rat.

Moody opened the cage and slipped the creature out so that the spell could be performed and watched silently as the smoke cleared and the body of Peter Pettigrew was revealed.

"I should have known," McGonagall whispered flatly as she stared grimly at the severely wounded boy.

"You don't sound surprised, Minerva," Moody observed.

"I'm not. Black demonstrated the same talent earlier this morning when we rescued Evans from Lupin in his werewolf form. I can not ignore this. If it had just been the other two I could have let it slide, but I can not condone all of them becoming illegal Animagi."

"Of course not Minerva, but are you certain both Black and Potter can transform as well?"

"I haven't seen them both transform, but I did see Sirius change into a large black dog that attacked the werewolf in order to prevent it from biting Miss Evans," McGonagall replied tightly.

Conjuring a stretcher she placed Pettigrew onto it and levitated him out of the classroom and down the hall to the Hospital wing. There was no sign of the caretaker in the hall.

* * *

On the fourth floor of St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, Kingsley Shacklebolt sat wearily between two beds. On his left lay Emmeline Vance, while on his right was Sturgis Podmore. Both Aurors remained unconscious and unmoving and had been that was from the moment that they had been admitted into the hospital over twelve hours ago. Across from his sat the sleeping form of Dedalus Diggle who was taking turns with him to guard the injured Aurors in case they woke.

Kingsley Stood up and stretched his legs for a few moments by pacing silently between the two beds. From the far end of the ward he could hear another patient cough in his sleep while yet another snored loudly just a bit further beyond him. After sending a short note to the Ministry of Magic, Kingsley had stopped into check on the two injured Aurors and update Dedalus and Elphias of the events that had taken place since he had seen them last.

As he paced now he began to wonder what was happening back at Hogwarts. Kingsley would have preferred to be at Moody's side in case the school was attacked. Sighing softly with frustration he instead sat back down between his two fellow Aurors and continued his vigil over them.

* * *

**AN:** _Well here's the next chapter. I got paroled by my sadistic plot bunny for a couple hours more this month for good behavior. Bout time I say, I've written another 150,000 plus words since the last chapter update on this fic. The new story is winding down though and I'm excited since once it is finished I'll be able to work on other stuff again. *crosses fingers* I don't plan to add more than another 50-100,000 words on the new story, but each time I think I'm done I find something else that I forgot to include or follow up on. I already have the next chapter of Truth partially edited so I should have that in a week or two at most. Thank you again to everyone who reviewed and/or put this story on their favorites/alert list. - Jenn_


	17. A Few Odds and Ends

**DISCLAIMER: **_ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 17: A Few Odds and Ends**

Later that same night in the dark shadows of the hospital wing at Hogwarts Jenn stirred restlessly as she slowly woke from the potion induced sleep. She could hear the soft murmuring of voices nearby and strained her ears in an effort to figure out who was talking. When that didn't work she rolled over and pushed herself up before opening her eyes. Everything was still dark. Turning her head every which way she tried to make out something of the room around her.

She knew she was in the hospital, that's where she had been when she had woken up earlier. Frowning she reached out tentatively with her hands and searched for the edge of the bed. As her hands neared the edge she brushed against someone's head resting on her bed. Slowly she explored further and found that who ever was sleeping there had almost shoulder length hair. Frowning Jenn tried to think who it could be, when she remembered that Sirius wore his hair slightly longer then the other Marauders. Jenn jerked her hand back and prayed she hadn't woken him with her touches.

Sitting back she panicked for several seconds before she managed to calm herself. She couldn't bear the thought of Sirius knowing she was blind. Jenn was certain now that she would never see again, in spite of the potion Madam Pomfrey had dropped in each eye. They no longer itched and burned like they had before, but her vision was just as dark as it had been the last time she woke. Not even a ghost of a shadow could be seen even though she knew that no matter how dark the castle at night, there was always some moonlight that filtered through the windows.

She felt ashamed of her blindness and of the weakness she felt flooding her soul at the thought of all the things she would never again see. Knowing that she would never again see Sirius smile lovingly at her or see the love he felt for her shining in his eyes. To never again look up at the evening sky and see the stars sparkling in the sky like diamonds. It was too much for Jenn to contemplate and she hated the helplessness she felt inside.

Dragging herself out from under the light coverings she slipped her feet over the other side of the bed and placed them silently onto the cold stone floor. Taking a deep breath she pushed herself up off the bed and moved forward a single step. Only to crash into a small table and spill its contents to the floor in a clattering of noise.

Frantically, Jenn turned and tried to flee but tripped over a chair that had been sitting beside her bed. As she landed in a heap on the floor she began to sob at her own foolishness. How could she have been so foolish to think she would have ever been able to leave without seeing where she was going?

* * *

Sirius woke with an abrupt start as several crashes echoed around him. A quick glance into the dim light of the hospital ward showed him the outline of Jenn standing near the table on the other side of her bed. Sirius allowed a huge smile to creep onto his face and was in the process of standing up when Jenn turned and tripped over the chair. Worried that she had been hurt he rushed to the other side of the bed and found her sobbing softly on the floor. Pulling the chair out of her way he spoke softly to her as he reached down to grab her arm.

"Are you okay, Jenn? Here let me help you up."

Jenn stifled a small scream at the sound of his voice and tried to back away from his touch but smacked her head on the bed instead. Sirius paused in confusion for a short second before he firmly took a hold of her left arm and raised her gently to her feet. Once she was standing he tried to pull her close so he could wrap her arms around her but found himself firmly pushed away. Abruptly he dropped his arms and let the smile slip from his face as he watched her try to move past him.

She managed to scoot a few feet along the bed without too much trouble when she ran into the chair a second time. She hadn't known that Sirius had moved the chair closer to the bed when he had moved it to help her up. As she tumbled to the floor a second time Jenn lashed out angrily at the chair, breaking one of its legs as it slammed heavily into the stone floor.

This time the noise was loud enough to wake the other students who sat up in time to watch the chair burst into flames as Jenn's uncontrollable anger called forth a small swarm of Ember Beings from the very air. Lily screamed sharply as the chair exploded outward with a showering of flames while Sirius stood stone-still behind Jenn. Several of the sparks landed on the nearby beds and began smoking at once as the sheets started to catch fire.

Lori hurried over and smothered the small fires before they could spread. She was shaking as she watched Jenn crying on the floor at the foot of her bed, the remains of the chair smoldering in front of her, and all traces of the Ember Beings gone. Shakily, Lily hurried over as well and knelt beside Jenn as she asked, "Are you ok? What happened?"

Jenn pushed Lily away just as she did Sirius and Lily was momentarily stunned as Jenn climbed to her feet and tried to run away once more. This time she runs right into Sirius and he automatically pulled her into an embrace to keep her from hurting herself further.

"Let me go!" Jenn cried tearfully as she struggled to get free. "Please, just let me go."

Lori slowly sank onto Jenn's abandoned bed as she realized what was going on. She brought her hands up to cover her face as Jenn continued to beg Sirius to just let her go. Lily slowly climbed to her feet and brushed off the ashes from the chair as she watched Jenn and Sirius for several seconds in silence. When she caught sight of Lori on the bed behind her she frowned before glancing back at Jenn.

"What the hell is going on?" Lily demanded forcefully as she continued to watch Jenn struggle helplessly.

* * *

Mad-Eye stirred from where he sat near where Pettigrew was lying unconscious. Turning his magical eye towards where the other students were making a fuss he was able to watch what was going on without letting them know what he was awake.

He frowned when he caught sight of the stony expression on Sirius's face. This was the second time within a three day period that he had seen the teen shut himself off. Shifting his eye to the right a bit he caught sight of Lily placing her hands on her hips and leaning forward in a demanding way while at the same time he noticed Lori pushing Jenn back onto her bed.

Moody contemplated heading over there to see if there was any thing he could do to help, when he heard a bed creak from nearby. Whirling his magical eye over in the direction of the bed, he saw James slip out of bed and weakly limp over to stand beside Lily.

Leaning back, Moody decided that he would monitor the situation and stay close to Peter in case the fourth boy decided to wake as well. Once the kids had settled down he would inform them that their friend was in the ward and would be right as rain in no time at all.

* * *

With Snape in tow, Avery led the way back to the Slytherin common room. Once inside, Avery ordered the rest of the Slytherin students out of the room. Several looked as if they would refuse but changed their mind when Crabbe and Goyle stepped up to either side of Avery and began cracking their knuckles menacingly. The moment the room was clear; Zebulon revealed to Severus the location of the hidden floo powder vessel and asked him to step inside the fireplace with him. Crabbe and Goyle stood to either side of the fireplace to insure that none of the other students wandered back into the common room.

Grabbing a small scoop of floo powder Avery tossed in to his feet and as the harmless flames flashed up around him he cried out the name of a place that Snape had never heard of. Before Severus could contemplate the name, however, they were twisting and flying through the network and hundreds of fireplaces were flashing by in a steady stream.

In no time they were thrown out of the network and into what at first glance looked like a deserted house. Avery stepped down first and bowed low in the direction of an old musty arm chair. Snape warily stepped down beside him and glanced in the direction that Avery was facing. When he saw who was seated there he immediately broke out into a cold sweat. Hesitantly he bowed as Avery had done as he frantically tried to figure out just what he had stumbled into by blindly following Avery. He stopped the rush of thoughts when he heard the Dark Lord address Avery in a less than pleased voice.

"You are late, boy," Voldemort hissed in muted anger.

"My apologies your Lordship, I was detained by an Auror searching the castle," Avery explained in a tone that was half respectful and half fearful.

"Where is the book?" Voldemort demanded.

"We could not find it, My Lord," Avery answered softly. "We searched both the Room of Requirement and the Dorm rooms where both Potter and Evans stayed. We found nothing."

"Liar!" Voldemort cried as he performed the Cruciatus Curse on Avery with a slight flick of the wand. Snape stood silently watching Zebulon screaming and twitching on the floor as the pain wracked his body for several long minutes. When suddenly Voldemort lifted the curse, Snape let his eyes drift to meet the Dark Lord's gaze. Voldemort was watching and waiting to see how Snape would react to his fellow student's torture.

After several minutes of silence Avery pushed himself to his feet while whimpering softly at the memory of the pain. Snape remained with his eyes locked on the Dark Lord, no expression showing on his face. Voldemort smiled coldly and broke eye contact as he turned to Avery once more. "You have failed me only once, boy, the next time you fail I will kill you myself."

Avery nodded dumbly as the Dark Lord turned to face Severus once more. "What is your name boy?" The Dark Lord asked with only slight interest.

"Severus Snape, My Lord," He replied softly and without feeling.

"Snape, why are you here?"

"Avery asked me to join in his cause and I agreed," Snape replied simply, again without emotion.

Voldemort sat silently for several minutes before he addressed both boys once more, "Snape, you will lead your fellow student back to the school and I would have you bring me the book that Lily Evans holds in her possession. It was called Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and I want it brought to me immediately."

Snape bowed low once more and turned to go, when the Dark Lord hailed him.

"Come here, boy," Snape walked nervously over to stand beside the Dark Lord, though he hid the fear as best as he could, and watched as he raised his wand until it pointed at Snape's left arm and ordered; "Lift your sleeve boy." Snape rolled up the sleeve without questioning the order and watched as the Dark Lord placed his mark upon his arm. Silently Snape bore the pain as the blood welled over and the flesh blackened. Lord Voldemort grinned savagely at his silent acceptance of the mark.

"You may go now. Do not fail me," Voldemort ordered softly as he settled back into his chair.

Severus wiped away the blood over the still tender mark, and silently led the way back to the fireplace. He shoved Avery in before him and dropped a pinch of Floo powder to his feet as this time he called out the Slytherin Common room. As the green flames surrounded them he looked out and met the gaze of the Dark Lord one last time before he was sucked into the network and taken back to the castle.

* * *

**AN:** _I apologize for the lateness of this chapter... As I mentioned on my profile and in my other story I just posted, my hard drive crashed and I lost over three hundred thousand words before it completely died. I did save everything else but it was touch and go there for a while and during the crash down period I didn't want to edit this story for fear I would lose it as well. I'm working from a flash drive for now though so updates will resume and I plan to have at least two more for this story this month. Chapter 18 is nearly finished and should be up in a couple of days. As I mentioned earlier I'm also posting a new story called **The Wishing Door** and it is a Pokemon/hp crossover. Anywho... hope you enjoyed the chapter and very much appreciate your patience with the slow updates here. =) Jenn_


	18. A Touch of Tenderness

**DISCLAIMER: **_ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 18: A Touch of Tenderness**

As Lily felt James place a hand on her shoulder she leaned into it slightly for strength. She wished Jenn would hurry up and answer her question but waited silently as Lori helped her back onto the bed. Glancing from Lori to Jenn, Lily had the impression that Lori knew what was wrong. Jenn remained sobbing silently with her face buried in her hands while Sirius stood stiffly with his arms folded across his chest.

James gave Lily a gentle squeeze before he crossed to speak silently to Sirius. Lily frowned as Jenn remained silent, and moved so she could kneel in front of her as she sat on the bed. Gently she pulled Jenn's hands away from her face and tried to peer into her friends eyes. Jenn, however, had them tightly closed.

"Jenn, look at me, please. Tell me what's going on. Please?" Lily whispered softly this time.

"I can't," Jenn choked in reply.

"What do you mean?" Lily asked in confusion.

"I can't, okay. I can't see a damn thing," Jenn spat out bitterly. "I'm _blind_ ok? Happy?" She yelled the last and opened her eyes as she angrily stared at nothing.

Lily sat silently holding Jenn's hands tightly as she looked into Jenn's sightless eyes. She felt crushed inside as she saw the truth of Jenn's words in the slight grey-blue film that now clouded her once bright eyes. Lily felt the world begin closing in around her as she fought to breathe; a ringing in her ears rose and fell as she recalled Voldemort's promise from her dream. He had promised that her 'friend would suffer' and again during the battle in the clearing he had said 'I can not let your defiance go unpunished.' and 'It is because of you that she suffers!'.

Lily bowed her head under the weight of guilt that surrounded her knowing that Jenn suffered because of her. She choked out a broken, "I am sorry Jenn. This is entirely my fault, I should nev -"

"Lily!" Lori gasped when she heard what was being said. James also took a step forward as if he too objected to Lily blaming herself though he didn't get a chance to speak since Lily beat him to it.

"It is my fault," Lily repeated louder as she stood up. "All of it is. None of you can deny that! I was the one who found the book. I was the one who shared it with all of you! If I had never touched it, never opened the cover; then none of this would have happened! All that has happened to us, to our parents, to my sister, to each of us and to Monica, has happened because I opened that book!"

There was complete silence after Lily finished her tirade. She stood there proudly, yet shamefully as she faced the other students. Remus was sitting up in his bed, James and Sirius stood side by side; both with unreadable expressions on their faces, Jenn faced in Lily's direction her tears drying on her face, and Lori stood looking down at the floor next to her. From across the room Moody twisted in his chair to stare at Lily as well, his magical eye fixed steadily on her as he stood up. While Dumbledore sat up in his bed with a concerned look on his face. Neither one spoke as they both focused their attention on the students at the other end of the hospital.

Several minutes passed and still no one attempted to break the silence. Lily turned away as if she would leave but was stopped as James moved to her side and touched her arm. Lily looked up and was shocked to see that there were tears in his eyes.

"Lily did you also cause the dreams?" James asked as he searched her eyes. "Did you create the fear that haunted us both from the moment we started school this year?" Lily didn't answer his questions; she just held his eyes with her own as the anguish she felt inside threatened to overwhelm her.

"Who's to say that all those things wouldn't have happened anyway?" James continued as if Lily had already answered him. "Voldemort does not care who stands in his way. He will stop at nothing; the only thing he wants is more power. He would kill a tiny babe in his way if it meant he would be one step closer to ruling over the entire magical world."

"What of Peter?" Lori suddenly added from where she sat beside Jenn. "I don't remember you asking him to follow you around the castle so that he could spy on you in rat form. I heard what Monica said before she died. She said that Peter told You-Know-Who about the book. You didn't make him go over to their side. He did that on his own."

"Peter had allowed Avery entrance into Gryffindor tower as well," Sirius said stiffly, his eyes still cold and his face still expressionless as he looked up from Jenn and faced Lily. "Zebulon thought it funny that one of the Marauders had run to Voldemort with information."

As Moody heard these words his magical eye swiveled around to stare at Peter through the back of his head. Moody also recalled how McGonagall had told him that Pettigrew went missing at the same time as the girl who had been murdered by the Death Eaters in the clearing. Disgust lined Moody's face as he realized the extent of Peter's deception. And to think, only moments ago, he had thought the other students would be happy to learn of their friend's eventual recovery. Moody heard Dumbledore shift on his bed and looked over to see his old friend turning to study the unconscious boy on the bed beside Moody. Dumbledore's face was lined with shock at hearing of Peter's involvement with recent events. They shared a brief glance before turning their attention back to the other students.

"None of us blame you, Lily," James added after a moment. Lily looked at each of the others before she looked back at James. Silently she stepped closer and wrapped her arms around his waist as she laid her head on his shoulder. James enfolded her in his arms and held her tenderly as his eyes sought out those of his best friend.

Sirius stood silently watching James and Lily until the moment his eyes met James and they shared a brief look of understanding. Sirius then turned to watch Jenn as she sat on the edge of the bed; he had been hurt when she had pushed him away after the closeness they had shared the last few weeks. Sirius had been shocked too, when he learned that she had lost her sight because of the injuries she had received during the battle.

As he watched her now, he felt a sudden wave of tenderness flood through him at the thought of what that loss might mean to her. Slowly he moved towards her and knelt in front of her so that he could look up into her face as he reached out and took her hands in his. He felt her resist ever so slightly, before allowing him to hold them.

"Jenn?" he whispered softly. "Do you remember what you told me that day when our parents were here at the Castle? When my mother sent me the howler?" he waited until Jenn nodded before he continued. "You told me that you 'didn't want me to think that you thought less of me for what that woman said of me'. You also asked for a chance to get to know me better. Do you remember that too?" Sirius asked.

Jenn closed her eyes and nodded a second time; she clearly remembered what had happened that day. It was the day she realized that there was much she didn't know about Sirius and the other Marauders. It was also the day she realized how much she had started to care for Sirius. Silently, Jenn opened her now useless eyes and gently tugged one of her hands free from Sirius's. Slowly she let it glide over and up his arm until she reached his shoulder and then she moved it higher still. Softly she brushed against his hair with her hand and then let her fingers trace along his neck until she found his ear. Carefully she let her palm rest against his cheek as she whispered softly. "I remember that day very well."

"I am glad you remember," Sirius replied softly back. "Those words you spoke meant a lot to me. They gave me hope when I thought there was none. Now, I want you to listen to me, Jenn. I don't think any less of you because of what you have lost. You are still beautiful to me and I would be lost without you. I would like a chance to get to know you even better. In the last several weeks you have shown me things I never thought I would see, taught me more then just a few spells, and you made me laugh every time you confused James with logic. I love you, Jenn. I love everything about you."

Jenn felt a slight dampness hit her hand where she touched Sirius's face, he was crying. Moved by his tender confession she pulled him closer to her and let the hand that was resting on his face slip around to rest gently behind his neck as she slipped her other hand around his waist. Sirius slipped his own arm around her and held her close in return.

Softly through her own tears she replied. "I love you too, Sirius. I have loved you ever since that day we went to Hogsmeade. I just never realized how much, until the day I heard your mother say those terrible things about you. It was then that I realized there was so much more to you then what she saw in you. I am sorry I tried to push you away. I was scared, I didn't what any of you to pity me for my blindness and I couldn't face it myself. It kills me inside to know I will never see you smile again."

"Oh, sweetheart," Sirius cried softly in understanding as he pushed himself to his feet and picked Jenn up from the bed. Holding her in his arms he took two steps over to the chair he had been sitting in when she had first woken up and sat down in it. Settling her on his lap he held her close to him and gently stroked her hair as she cried softly on his shoulder.

Lori sat alone on the bed with silent tears rolling down her face as she watched both of her best friends being comforted. She felt awkward and alone as she had always been the one to offer comfort to them both in the past. She didn't envy them their new found love, but she desperately wished that she had someone to hold her.

At this thought she turned her head to look at Remus where he sat up in his bed. He was smiling softly as he watched both Lily and James and Sirius and Jenn. As she watched him, Remus turned to meet her eyes with his own. She saw a shadow cross his face fleetingly and realized that he was even more alone than she. While Lori would eventually find someone to love her; who would be willing to love a werewolf? Knowing that on every full moon he would become an uncontrollable monster.

Lori thought back to how she had reacted the day she learned of his affliction and felt a wave of guilt flash through her. She had been cruelly cold to him since that day. Standing up she walked over and silently sat down on the edge of his bed. She would have sat in a chair, but the one that used to sit next to his bed sat in a pile of ashes on the floor at the end of Jenn's bed now.

"Remus," Lori started nervously. "I -"

Remus smiled and gently placed his hand over her mouth before she could say another word. "You don't have to say it, I understand. We could be friends though, if you'd like."

Lori smiled and nodded before whispering a soft, "I'd like that."

On the other side of the room, Dumbledore laid back down in his bed as he thought about all that he had learned tonight as the students talked. Moody himself moved his chair closer to Dumbledore's bed as quietly as he could so that he could watch over his friend more closely. Then, after a moments consideration he stood up and began moving one of the portable screen that Madam Pomfrey kept in the ward for privacy and set it up around Peter's bed.

Once he was satisfied the Pettigrew wouldn't be able to see any of the other patents in the hospital when he woke up, Moody settled back into his chair and watched Dumbledore with his good eye, while his magical eye kept a close watch on Pettigrew through the screen.

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**AN: **_Only five chapters left to post... Chapter 19 is almost finished and if I can keep up this pace I **might** be able to get all five posted this month. No promises though... In the mean time I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Jenn_


	19. Recovering

**DISCLAIMER: **_ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

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**Chapter 19: Recovering**

The next week and a half passed in a blur for those who were recovering in the hospital wing at Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Dumbledore recovered enough strength after a week of restorative potions to return to his duties as Head Master. He was watched closely by both Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall in their efforts to keep him from over doing it.

Of the seven students that had been in the hospital only one had not yet regained consciousness. That one was Peter; Madam Pomfrey was beginning to worry that his wounds would never completely heal. Moody remained in the ward much to her dismay and refused to relinquish his self imposed surveillance of the former Marauder.

Several Aurors now resided in the school and constantly patrolled the hallways after hours to insure that the students were safe while classes picked up where they had left off. The winter holidays were only a week away and all of the students would be sent home; only the four Marauders and the three girls were being allowed to remain at the school.

Lily, Jenn, and Lori talked to each other several times as they recovered. Each of them going over everything that had happened to them the night of the battle and afterwards. Sometimes James and the others would join in, but mostly the three boys sat on one bed and messed with the Marauders map in an effort to remove Pettigrew's name from it. They had found out that he was in the hospital two days after Lily's outburst. None of the six had attempted to go see him however; they all distrusted him and planned to use the map to keep a constant watch on the unconscious boy in case he awoke while they were still there.

During this time the Harry Potter book was never mentioned by any of the students, although they thought about it frequently. They all knew that Lori had the book stuffed under the mattress of the bed that Jenn had been sleeping in and they all knew that Avery was looking for the book for Voldemort. But that wasn't why they avoided discussing the book. When Lily's sister had been murdered it had drastically altered the future; with Monica's death, all six knew that the future would be changed yet again. Each one of them worried and wondered what the future would hold for them now. The only thing that had remained constant in the future was James and Lily's deaths.

With the holidays drawing nearer the six turned their thoughts to school, and wondered how they would ever make up the assignments they were missing out on. This was their last year at Hogwarts and they had their N.E.W.T.s to take at the end of the year.

Another half a week went by and five of the six students were released from the hospital. Jenn had to remain behind because she was not yet used to walking about without seeing where she was going. Professor McGonagall herself escorted them up to the Gryffindor tower and waited for them as they cleaned up the messes the Slytherins had left behind in their dorms. Lily and Lori had been a little shocked to find that the Slytherins had ransacked their dorm as well in their search for the book.

Once everything had been cleaned up and all of the students had packed up their remaining belongings, Lily and Lori had helped pack up Jenn's, they trudged back down the stairs with their bags in hand. McGonagall watched silently as they assembled before her, and then led the way back out of the common room. From the dorms, they headed upstairs; where they would gather their books from the Room of Requirement before being led to their new quarters. Silently they added their books to their trunks and made sure that everything was left as it was before they had moved into the room.

As they stepped out of the Room of Requirement the door melted back into the wall as if it had never existed in the first place. Professor McGonagall gave them a reassuring smile and led them back to the stairs and down two levels. On the fifth floor she turned to the left and moved confidently down the hall a short ways before she turned right and then left again almost immediately. There she stopped in front of what looked like an empty wall.

"This is where you will be staying for the rest of your year at Hogwarts. Professor Dumbledore has set in place several security measures to insure you will not be found. I have a letter from Professor Dumbledore with me that I would like you all to read silently to yourselves now," McGonagall explained softly as she pulled a small square of parchment from her pocket.

They quickly read the note.

_You will be staying in the old unused Potions classroom on the fifth floor of the castle._

Lily looked up a bit confused at the message and as she thought about what it said; a door grew into being on the wall in front of her. "Oh," She exclaimed softly.

Once all five of them had read the note McGonagall set fire to it before she ushered them into the former classroom. Looking around the room, they never would have guessed that it had ever been a classroom. There were no desks or benches in site. Instead there was a large fireplace on the left side of the room that took up most of the wall. On the blank walls to either side of it there were large square patches of discolored stone that marked where a pair of portraits had recently been removed from the walls. In front of the fireplace were several cozy armchairs and footstools that appeared to be made from horsehair.

Stepping further into the room, they were able to see a single table large enough for all six of them to sit down and work on their homework or to eat at during meal times. Just beyond the table was a buffet table set with several empty dishes that would be filled during mealtimes from the kitchens below. Just past both tables were several doors leading to both bedrooms and to bathrooms for the six students.

"I will leave you here now," McGonagall announced after giving them a few minutes to take in the room. "Professor Dumbledore said he would escort Ms. Parksen down himself later this evening. We will be coming to check on you all once a day until the holidays begin. At which time you will be allowed to leave this room. Until then, it would be best if you were not seen by the rest of the students. It has been announced that you were sent to home early in order to mislead those that wish you harm."

The five of them listened silently and nodded when McGonagall finished. They stood looking at each other for several minutes after the door had closed behind the Professor before they all headed over to the chairs to wait for Jenn's arrival. After a few minutes, Sirius stood up and paced around the former classroom but when he grew bored with that he opened the first door that opened of the wall across from the fireplace.

Inside he found a dorm room decorated in the Gryffindor colors. Along the far wall there were three beds each with a window beside it. At the end each bed there was a small four drawer dresser with a water pitcher and glass sitting on top of it. Directly across from the beds were three more doors. Curious he strode to the first door and opened it. Inside he found a small bathroom complete with shower, sink, toilet, and a small closet in which to hang clothes. Grinning he hurried out and checked the other two doors by the other beds and sure enough there were matching bathrooms behind those doors as well.

When he stepped back into the bathroom he looked about the room and then frowned as he briefly wondered how their professors had fit three bathrooms and a bedroom inside an old class room. Unless, they had made use of more then one unused classroom when preparing this hiding place since the castle was notorious for resisting excessive use of expansion spells.

Then Sirius remembered that Professor Dumbledore had been working on this for weeks now, had in fact mentioned it shortly after they had moved into the Room of Requirement. Knowing that, Sirius felt a bit more comfortable wandering about the rooms. Smiling to himself he stepped back into what he now considered the Marauders Common Room and tried another of the doors that led off the main room. To his surprise the door would not open.

Sirius frowned slightly and scratched his head before he tried a second time, this time the handle shocked him. Jumping back Sirius yelped in surprise as he shook his hand to get rid of the tingling sensation that had spread through it from the door.

"What's up Padfoot?" James called out from where he had been sitting and brooding near the fireplace.

"The door bit me," Sirius complained in a whiny voice as he continued to shake his hand.

Lily started laughing as they saw the look on his face, while James stood up and went to investigate the door. He too tried to open the door and had no luck. On his second attempt the handle shocked his hand as well. Both girls were laughing now as they got up and walked over to the door.

"You can't go in there," Lily giggled as she motioned the boys to step aside.

"Why not?" James demanded as he too shook his hand.

"It's most likely the set aside for us girls so it stands to reason that you boys won't be able to go inside," Lily replied as she reached out and opened the door with the first try.

"How did you do that?" Sirius muttered with a frown. As the door drifted open Sirius caught a glimpse of a bedroom similar to the first one he'd explored, right down to the Gryffindor colors, but noticed that all the bed coverings and curtains were a touch more frilly than the ones in the other room. He tried to lean inside to get a better look, when he felt himself rebuffed from the door. Lily laughed louder and walked inside the room while Lori followed after her and closed the door. James and Sirius stood in silent shock as they stared at the closed door.

"Well, I guess we have been told," James remarked as he moved over to the first door that Sirius had explored and checked it out.

Sirius shook his head and was about to open the third door when he remembered being shocked by the last one. Carefully he tapped the handle three times quickly, looking for all the world as if he expected it to attack him. When he was certain it was safe he grasped the handle and pushed the door open. Inside he found a long table in the middle of the room with six chairs spaced around it. To his left there was a long bookcase that was filled with various books on Charms, Transfiguration, Potions, and many other school subjects. On top of the book case were several small, empty cages, vases, and different shaped boxes. Stepping further into the room, Sirius glanced to the right and saw two large cupboards on either end of the wall.

As he stepped towards the closet cabinet James walked in and whistled appreciatively when he saw the bookcase. Sirius grinned over his shoulder and opened the cupboard with a flourish. Inside they could see a huge stack of blank parchment, several large bottles of ink, three different size quills, rulers, vials, two sets of brass weights, and a shelf of cleaning supplies as well.

James then stepped over to the other cabinet and discovered an extensive collection of potion ingredients all neatly organized by type. Sirius grinned mischievously as he eyed the different jars and vials of powers, plants, and liquids. James returned the smile and slowly closed the cupboard.

Together they glanced at the sinks that lined the last wall and then turned to leave. As they walked back to the door, they noticed several empty portraits hung on the wall. Curious they went up and examined them. Below each portrait there was a small metal placard engraved with a single school subject and a teacher's name underneath that.

"So that's how it's going to work. I suppose each professor will use a corresponding portrait to teach each subject in turn. Or possible some kind of projection spell that allows them to appear as if they are a portrait," James murmured as he studied the empty portrait labeled 'TRANSFIGURATION – McGonagall'.

"Tragic," Sirius muttered as he frowned at the pictures.

James laughed as they both left the room, making sure to securely shut the door behind them. As they stepped back into the common room the saw Lily and Lori walk out of the girl's dorm and levitate their trunks into their room along with Jenn's.

Remus was no where to be seen, but the door to the boy's dorm was hanging open and his trunk was no longer sitting in the common room with James and Sirius's things. Smiling at each other they walked over and grabbed their trunks and hauled them to their new room.

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**AN:** _Wow... three updates in less than a week... I've just impressed myself. lol. I hope to finish editing the last four chapters over the rest of the month but won't make any promises because I'm working on a couple of other stories right now as well. Fair warning, the third and final book in this series is going to need to be edited as well and I probably won't even start on it until after I finish up the three newer stories I'm working on right now. I will post periodical updates on my author's page with estimates of when I will start posting it though. Anyhow... thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Jenn_


	20. Compensations

**DISCLAIMER: **_ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

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**Chapter 20: Compensations**

Up in the hospital wing, Jenn sat silently while she waited for Professor Dumbledore to escort her to their new quarters. Madam Pomfrey had told her that the Headmaster would come for her around lunchtime that afternoon and Jenn felt lonely now that her friends had been released from the ward. She desperately wished she could have gone with them to pack but she knew she would just be in the way until she learned to cope with her blindness. And while she no longer felt as crippled as she had when she first discovered that she had been blinded, she still felt the loss of her sight sharply.

There were compensations for the loss however. Over the last two weeks she had discovered that her hearing had grown sharper. She could now make out a whispered conversation clear on the other end of the ward as if she were standing right next to the speakers. That was how she had found out that the captured Death Eaters had escaped two days after she had woken up and that one of the Aurors had been kissed by rogue dementors.

Kingsley Shacklebolt had come to see Mad-Eye, who was guarding the unconscious Peter in case he should wake, and they had been discussing the attack that had taken place in the Ministry. Jenn had been lying down on her bed with her eyes closed at the time, thinking about the events that had happened since the start of term, when she had heard the door open and close. Shortly after that she had heard Kingsley address Moody and the conversation that followed.

Later that morning she had whispered the information to Lily and the others over breakfast. They had been worried over the information regarding the break in at the Ministry and more than a little impressed with Jenn's heightened hearing. Sirius had called her an honorary Marauder for the pranking possibilities and asked her if she knew if any of her other senses had improved as well. It didn't take them long to figure out that her sense of touch was also improved, as she could tell the difference between James and Sirius's face as well as the difference between Lily and Lori's hands.

These newfound abilities gave Jenn a sense of pride in her self that had been seriously lacking since she discovered that she had lost her eyesight and it gave her an added edge because none of the school's professors or staff knew of her abilities yet. In the time that had passed since they had discovered those traits, Jenn had tested herself religiously so that she had a firm grasp of what she could learn from the world around her using those heightened senses.

She was practicing now, while she waited for Dumbledore to come for her. She started simple, by identifying those sounds that came from within the hospital ward. On the far side of the room she could hear Peter's slow rhythmic breathing as he lay unconscious. Next she recognized Moody's raspy breathing as he sat watching over Peter and the creaking of the chair the grizzled old Auror sat in as Moody shifted occasionally in order to get comfortable. Moving on to the next sound, she logged the ticking of the hospital clock before she identified the slight buzzing of a fly that was hovering around one of the windows. From the direction of Madam Pomfrey's office she could hear the scratching of a quill on paper as the healer wrote a short note. She was concentrating on the tapping noise coming from the office when she noticed an immediate difference in the sounds coming from inside the ward. Quickly she focused her attention back on the ward and tried to trace the sound that had caught her attention.

There it was again, a soft barley audible moan coming from the bed where Peter lay unconscious. Sitting up a bit more in her bed she was flooded with a sudden wariness as she listened to the changes in his breathing.

Moody caught sight of Ms. Parksen's abrupt change in posture as he scanned the room with his magical eye and was instantly alerted by the stiffness in her back as she focused unseeing eyes in his direction. Frowning he tried to figure out what could have possibly caused her to shift her attention over to this part of the ward, when he caught the slightest of movements from the corner of his normal eye. Shifting quickly Moody was able to block a weak blow that Peter had aimed at his head. As Moody whipped out his wand to subdue the boy, Jenn cried out for the healer to come quickly.

Jenn had heard Peter shift on his bed, and then flesh contact flesh as Peter had tried to hit Moody. Not knowing who hit who, Jenn had cried out when she heard the swish of a wand being pulled from inside a cloak. She feared that it was Peter taking the wand but heard Moody's voice a second later just as Madam Pomfrey's footsteps echoed from her office as she came to Moody's help.

Slumping back in her bed she sighed softly in relief, thankful that Peter never had the chance to escape or hurt anyone. She shivered slightly as she recalled the fear that had slid through her when she couldn't actually _see_ what was going on. If it hadn't been for her hearing exercises that she did every morning, she never would have recognized what was happening in time.

As Peter lay quietly stunned in the bed, Moody looked up in time to see Jenn relax back onto her bed. He watched her for several seconds with his magical eye before he spoke softly to Madam Pomfrey concerning Pettigrew's behavior. She listened tightly and then hurried into her office for two potions before returning to Moody's side. Silently she poured out a measured dosage of a sleeping draught into a small cup and revived Peter before giving him the entire contents of the cup. Within minutes he was sleeping soundly once more under the influence of the potion.

The second vile she left with Moody while she left the ward in search of the Headmaster so that he could be informed of Peter's waking. Slowly Moody moved in Jenn's direction while he kept his magical eye on Pettigrew in case he should wake. As he moved closer to the girl he noticed that she sat up and turned in his direction, as if she already knew that he was coming to see her. This made Moody pause for a brief second as he considered the implications of that. Picking up his pace he pulled a chair gently over next to the girl and sat down. Before he could address her, she spoke to him.

"Good morning, Auror Moody. All is well I trust?"

Frowning at her he replied, "Better now. I wanted to see how you were doing; things are much quieter now that your friends have been kicked out."

Jenn smiled briefly at his comment and tilted her head just slightly to the side as she faced him. Moody stared into her clouded eyes and couldn't help feel that she saw things he couldn't see even with his magical eye.

"It's lonely without them, yes, but it is never quiet in here," Jenn replied as she continued to face Moody. "You hesitated on your way here, was there something bothering you sir?"

Moody drew a sharp breath at her question and turned his magical eye on her for several seconds before he let it drift back to watch over Pettigrew. "Might I ask how you knew that? I barely paused for a second. For that matter, you knew Pettigrew was awake before he moved to hit me as well didn't you?" Moody asked in his brash and straight forward manner.

"Moody, sir, can you keep this between just the two of us?" Jenn asked softly. Moody nodded before he caught himself and replied with an equally soft yes. "Since I lost my eyesight, my hearing as improved greatly; and I have spent the last two weeks training myself to recognize every sound that I hear, and Peter's breathing had been a constant wheeze from the start. A few moments before he struck at you I heard his breathing change and the fabric catch on his hands as he moved them. When I heard him hit you, I feared the worst, because I couldn't see what was happening," Jenn supplied in answer to his question.

"That makes at least makes a little sense," Moody mused aloud as he continued to study her with his normal eye. "So how did you know I hesitated on the way here?"

"The pattern of your footsteps changed as you moved across the floor and the sound stuck out in my mind," Jenn responded simply.

"You are a remarkable young woman, Ms. Parksen. I must commend you on your quick grasp of the situation. You saved me from getting hit upside the head just now. Even though Pettigrew is still weak, the blow would have been enough to allow him access to my wand had he managed to land a solid blow to the temple. You alerted me when you turned your attention to that side of the room." Moody praised her in gratitude.

Jenn blushed fiercely at the compliment from such an accomplished Auror and murmured softly under her breath, "I'm glad I could help, sir."

"From what I have heard, you have a good handle on your magical skills as well. May I ask what career you are planning to apply for when you leave Hogwarts this year?"

Jenn felt her high spirits sag with the question. She thought back to her fifth year, when she and Lily had informed McGonagall that they wished to become Aurors upon leaving school. Now, she didn't think she had a chance to obtain such a job without her eyesight. Moody watched her face intently while he waited for a reply.

"I had been hoping to become an A…auror. Lily and I both had decided that we were going to apply to the academy together," Jenn whispered softly as she choked a bit over the word Auror.

"I see no reason why you couldn't still become an Auror girl. There are no requirements calling for each applicant to be perfect. You have gifts that will far outpace your lack of sight and these days very few of our Aurors travel alone. Pared with the right partner, you could easily function at a level that far outpaces the others because of the talent we just discussed."

Jenn sat in a stunned silence as she tried to digest what Moody has just told her.

"Think about it. If you decide that you still want to be an Auror, come tell me, or if I am not here send me an owl and I will submit your application to the academy with my approval stamped on it," Moody added as he stood up to leave.

"I… will give it serious thought, sir," Jenn replied in awe as she tried to understand what had just happened.

"Very well, now if you will excuse me, Dumbledore is here."

"Of course, but you do know that he is not alone, right?" Jenn replied.

Moody laughed because she was right. Kingsley paced along side the Headmaster along with Madam Pomfrey. As Moody made his way back to Peter's side the three of them opened the door and entered the ward.

Jenn lay back down and silently considered what she had learned and carefully pretended that she wasn't listening to the low conversation that was taking place over at Peter's bed. True to his word, Moody said nothing of Jenn's new found ability to discern the slightest sounds around her. Jenn had the sneaking suspicion that Moody knew she was listening in on the conversation and smiled in his direction as she imagined that his magical eye watched over her as he addressed Professor Dumbledore.

From where he stood near the Headmaster, Moody caught site of the smile and almost laughed aloud in spite of himself. He admired the spunk and audacity of the girl and hoped she would seriously consider his offer. He, for one, would be willing to help her on her way to becoming an Auror if she so chose.

* * *

Lily stood just inside the girl's new dorm room and looked at the beds with a slight frown on her face. Lori stood to one side and waited for Lily to say something. "I think we should give Jenn the first bed," Lily announced after a few minutes. "That way she doesn't have to worry about tripping over stuff to get to either of the other beds."

"I was thinking the same thing," Lori agreed as she pushed her trunk a but further into the room. "Which bed did you want Lily?"

"It doesn't matter to me really." Lily replied. "Did you want the bed next to Jenn?"

"Why don't you take that one? I'll take the last one," Lori replied with a smile.

"You sure?" Lily asked

"Yep."

Lily smiled back at Lori and pushed her own trunk to the dresser at the foot of the middle bed. With a wave of her wand she charmed the clothes inside to gently float up out of the trunk and into the drawers of her dresser as Lori sighed from the last bed and proceeded to unpack by hand.

"I wish I could charm things the way you do Lily. It would make my life so much easier!" Lori exclaimed.

Lily laughed and set up several pictures on top of the dresser before taking her toiletries into the bathroom across from her bed. She was unexpectedly happy to have her own bathroom, at home she had always had to share her with her sister. As she thought of her sister, Lily saddened and quickly put away her things and left the bathroom before she started crying.

Back in the room she waved her wand once more and put away Jenn's clothes in the dresser at the end of the first bed and then pondered her friend's empty trunk. After a moments deliberation she moved it against the wall right under the charmed window that sat next to Jenn's bed near the door. It would be well out of her friend's way and would help Jenn to know where the window was.

Lori finished putting away her own stuff and placed her own trunk under her window as well. Lily decided to move her trunk into the small closet inside her bathroom. When that was done she checked Jenn's bathroom to make sure there was nothing for her to trip over and then headed back into the room. Lori was waiting for her by the door to the common room and together they stepped out of the dorm room.

From the direction of the boy's dorm, they could hear Sirius and James playfully fighting over who got the middle bed while Remus laughed as he unpacked his stuff into the dresser at the far end. Smiling at their childish behavior Lily moved over towards the table and felt her self grow hungry at the sight of the empty dishes on the buffet. Glancing at her watch she was stunned to find that it was so close to lunch time. Anticipating the arrival of the food, Lily picked up a plate and leaned casually against the table while she waited.

Two minutes later the dishes filled with all kinds of delicious food. Lily stepped forward and began to fill her plate with sandwiches and a bit of salad as she called out to the boys that lunch was here. There was a loud bang as Sirius dropped his trunk and bounded out of the room to eat. James laughed as he tossed Sirius's trunk onto the first bed and claimed the middle one for himself. He quickly unpacked his stuff before he came out to fill his own plate.

"That was underhanded, Prongs," Moony laughed softly as he joined James at the buffet.

"Yes, but lucky for me Padfoot always thinks of his stomach first," James replied good-naturedly.

Remus laughed again before moving to sit down between Lily and Lori at the table. When they gave him a smile and a surprised look, he grinned back and pointed at James and Sirius where they sat alone on the other side of the table.

"I didn't want to lose my food by sitting in between those two animals," Remus replied conspiratorially as he took a bite out of a spare rib. "They have no manners."

Lori and Lily laughed as they agreed with him. James and Sirius looked up but remained oblivious to the fact that they had just been picked on by the other three. Their sole attention was for the food on their plate as they ate ravenously.

* * *

**AN:** _Only three chapters remaining in this book... and hopefully I can finish them up fairly soon. Chapter 21 is half revised already so I expect to have it up in a few days. - Jenn_


	21. Accepting Limitations

**DISCLAIMER: **_ALL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 21: Accepting Limitations**

After a hushed conversation with Moody, Dumbledore headed over to Jenn to speak with her. Jenn heard him walking towards her, and tried to ignore him politely until she felt he was close enough for a normal person to hear him. Sitting up she looked in the general direction of the footsteps and smiled slightly. While she listened to the footsteps move closer she could distinguish a difference in the way the footsteps sounded from the way Moody's had sounded earlier. And the footsteps were decidedly heavier than Madam Pomfrey's, so Jenn suspected that it was Dumbledore who was approaching her.

"Ms. Parksen," Dumbledore spoke softly as he neared her.

"Professor Dumbledore, sir," Jenn replied respectfully as she smiled to herself at guessing correctly who it was that approached her.

"How are you holding up?" Dumbledore asked while he studied her over his glasses.

"Doing okay, sir, but it is a little lonely here without the others," Jenn replied.

"Of course," Dumbledore said absently. He considered her for a moment before he continued. "I would like to take you to them now. I don't want to take any risks with your safety while you are here alone."

"Oh," Jenn mumbled. She suspected that Dumbledore didn't want her to over hear anything Peter might say. She had heard Moody mention using a Truth Serum on Pettigrew when he awoke. Jenn almost wished she could stay long enough to hear what they might ask him and what his answers would be.

Dumbledore leaned closer until he was only inches from her left ear before he spoke softly so that only she could hear. "I will be taking you to _the old unused Potions classroom on the fifth floor of the castle_." Dumbledore leaned back and asked louder. "Did you get all of that?"

Jenn nodded for she had heard him with crystal clearness and would have even if he had not leaned so close.

"Good," Dumbledore replied as he pushed himself up from the chair. "I will be back to collect you once you have eaten."

"Thank you, sir," Jenn said softly as Dumbledore patted her shoulder and moved back over to where Moody stood near Pettigrew.

Five minutes later she heard Madam Pomfrey step away from Dumbledore and head to her office. When she stepped back out Jenn could hear the rattling of the tray she carried. Sitting up Jenn tried to appear as if she was just trying to get comfortable, instead of anticipating her food.

"Here you are Miss Parksen; I brought you a couple of sandwiches and some pumpkin juice for lunch," Madam Pomfrey announced as she set up a tray over Jenn's lap.

"Thank you Madam Pomfrey," Jenn murmured politely as she settled a pillow behind her.

"You're welcome, dear," Madam Pomfrey replied as she moved away.

Jenn sat there nervously contemplating her meal for a few moments without making a move to touch any of it. Over the past two weeks she had always had one of the others there beside her to tell her where everything was sitting on her tray. Jenn didn't want to knock everything over like that night when she had tried to run away. She knew the adults were still in the room and she had no desire to humiliate herself in front of them by making a huge mess of her lunch, herself, and the bed. To buy a few minutes of time Jenn pretended to fix her pillow a second time before sitting back again.

Moody had watched Jenn during her conversation with Dumbledore and continued to do so now as she prepared to take her lunch. Kingsley was settling down to watch the sleeping Peter and Dumbledore had asked Moody to dine with him for lunch but Moody had not answered him yet. He was busy watching Jenn's face as she fidgeted about in her bed and seemingly ignored her food. He knew that in the past the other students had always been there with her and he wondered how much guidance they offered to her when it came to functioning in so simple a task as finding her silverware, her cup, or the plate.

"Alastor?" Dumbledore prompted a second time pulling Moody out of his thoughts. "Will you join me?"

Moody frowned and considered. Normally he would never have hesitated accepting the invitation but something held him back this time. "Maybe for supper Albus, I think I will remain here for the time being. Poppy, is there anyway I could talk you out of a couple of sandwiches?"

"Very well Alastor. I will see you this evening then" Dumbledore replied good-naturedly through the slight surprise he felt at his friend declining the invitation before he turned and exited the hospital room.

Madam Pomfrey gladly went to collect Moody a tray from her office as Moody made his way over to where Jenn sat with her hands in her lap.

"Sir?" Jenn asked as she looked up in his direction nervously when she realized that he was heading in her direction.

"I thought you might like some company for lunch," Moody replied softly. "It must be very lonely without those noisy friends of yours around. That is, if you don't mind a grouchy old man for company."

"I don't mind, sir," Jenn replied with a smile.

"Perfect. And why don't you call me Alastor. I get tired of hearing people call me, sir," Moody said gruffly. "I may look old but that doesn't mean I like being reminded of my age."

"Of course sir, I mean, Alastor," Jenn returned with a brilliant smile in his direction. "But only if you call me Jenn, all my friends do."

"Deal," Moody responded with a small laugh.

Madam Pomfrey walked up a moment later and set Moody's tray on the small table beside the bed and headed back to her office to finish writing out her request for supplies. Moody began at once poking around at the sandwich as if checking for poison. Once he was satisfied he lifted it to his mouth and took a large bite. As he chewed he watched Jenn fidget nervously again as she faced her own tray. Moody swallowed what was in his mouth and addressed her once more.

"Aren't you hungry?"

Jenn paled at his question but nodded in response. She tried to listen to what was going on in Kingsley's direction for some clue as to what he was doing but gave up when she heard nothing more then Peter breathing in his sleep. She heard Moody take another bite and pull his personal flask from his cloak while she tried to think of a way to tell him what was wrong without seeming to be weak. Finally she decided to tell him the truth straight out, knowing somehow that he would not laugh at her.

"I don't know where everything is on the plate. Madam Pomfrey moves everything all the time and I don't want to spill everything. Sirius and Lily always gave me little hints to help me place everything on the tray."

"Ah, I think I understand now. With all of us adults hovering about the room you were afraid that you would embarrass yourself in front of us. We would not have laughed, you know. And if you move your right had to the left just a bit, you will find your drink placed near the edge of the tray at the top," Moody replied after he took a drink out of his flask.

"It's not just the embarrassment that would have bothered me. I didn't want anyone to pity me, it would have made me feel worse then I do already. Lily knew that from being my friend for years and Sirius only wants to help me. And thank you," Jenn replied as she slid her hand slowly up the surface of the tray and moved it towards the left until she touched the glass.

"I know how you feel. When I first lost my eye I felt something similar. I could still see but not as well as before. Then when I got my magical eye, people looked at me funny. I know everyone calls me Mad-Eye behind my back but it no longer bothers me and i find that it intimidates people which helps in my line of work."

Jenn nodded as she used her left hand to help her place her glass back on the tray close to where she got it from. Next she dragged both hands along the tray until she encountered her plate and managed to pick up one sandwich without it falling apart on her.

As she relaxed and spoke with Moody while she ate, she found herself relaxing enough to ask Moody about what it was like being an Auror. He willingly told of her several battles he had faced, the types of spells he had been up against, and how important it was to be always aware of what was going on around you. His personal motto was constant vigilance and he stressed this several times during the conversation. Jenn drank in every word as she ate her meal and questioned the veteran Auror.

When she had finished eating she asked about the years of training that witches and wizards were required to undergo before becoming an Auror. The extent of the training was mind boggling and the number of accidents that happened frightening when compared to some of the easier wizarding jobs available. Moody and Jenn were still talking freely about Auror training when Dumbledore returned to collect her. Jenn was sorry to end their conversation and wished that Moody could come with her but reluctantly said her goodbyes as Dumbledore handed her a special cane that she could use to help her find her way around.

Madam Pomfrey came out and whisked away the lunch trays as Jenn pushed it out of her way and swung her feet over the side of the bed. With the cane in her left hand she pushed herself up and stood for several seconds while she adjusted to the change in position. Dumbledore offered her an arm and slowly he led her out of the hospital.

"Everything okay, Ms. Parksen?" Dumbledore asked as they moved towards the stairway. When she nodded Dumbledore spoke up again. "Wonderful. Now I want you to use that cane as if it were part of your hand. Tap it out in front of you in an arch."

Jenn did as she was instructed and was surprised to hear a small buzzing voice telling her that the way was all clear. As she tapped about she knocked a suit of armor and was told that there was an obstacle two feet to her left.

"It talks!" Jenn exclaimed as she stepped around the armor and continued on her way.

"Does it?" Dumbledore inquired. "I didn't know it could do that but then it never spoke to me. It used to hum to me though, sounded like music that got louder when it touched something other that the floor."

Jenn smiled and continued to tap the cane out in front of her. She had almost panicked when Dumbledore said he didn't know it spoke until he mentioned the humming. She gave a mental sigh when it didn't seem as if he suspected how well her hearing had improved; not that she didn't trust the venerable old headmaster – she was just hesitant to share that kind of information in light of everything that had happened so far this year.

When they reached the stairs Jenn held back nervously as she wasn't sure she would be able to climb them without tripping. Dumbledore patiently waited for her to relax before he encouraged her to try moving up them. This time he told her to change her hold on the cane, so that she was holding it like a hiker using a walking stick to climb a steep hill, and held her hand while he showed her how to test the stairs in front of her.

Slowly she began moving up the staircase, one hand on the rail and the other using the cane as Dumbledore climbed up behind her with a hand on her one elbow for support in case she should lose her balance. Little by little they worked their way up several flights of stairs this way. When they reached the fifth floor, Dumbledore turned her so she faced the right direction and they moved off towards the classroom where the others were waiting. Left, then right and left again, Jenn memorized the turns until Dumbledore came to a stop in front of what appeared to be a solid wall.

"Now, I would like you to reach out and tap the wall in front of you with the cane." Dumbledore instructed as he stood next to her.

Jenn did as he asked and heard the cane reply 'no door' and 'wall' with each tap. When she lowered the cane to the floor Dumbledore told her to think about what he had said earlier in the hospital before she had eaten her lunch. Jenn concentrated and recalled that he had told her she was to be staying in an old unused classroom on the fifth floor.

"Now try tapping the wall again," Dumbledore said quietly.

For the second time Jenn tapped the wall and heard the cane call out 'no door' and 'wall' for the second time. "Nothing, sir, just the wall."

Dumbledore frowned slightly and then asked her if she was thinking of the words he had told her exactly as he had said them to her. Jenn frowned for a minute while she considered again the words he had whispered earlier and realized that she hadn't thought of them exactly as he had said them. Smiling at her mistake she concentrated once again, saying the words in her mind; _an old unused Potions classroom on the fifth floor of the castle_. This time when she tapped the wall the cane spoke a single word: 'door'.

Grinning she reached forward and opened the door to the old classroom.

* * *

**AN:** _Only two more chapters left and this portion of the series will be complete. It's been an uphill battle all year trying to get this done and I for one am happy to be nearly finished. I'm hoping to get the final two chapters up before the end of the month or at least by the end of the first week of next month. Keep your fingers crossed and pray the muses don't go hunting the plot bunnies again. lol - Jenn_


	22. Together Again

**DISCLAIMER:** A_LL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 22: Together Again**

Dumbledore guided her inside the room and closed the door behind them. Almost at once Jenn was assaulted by a barrage of noise as the other five students pushed themselves up from where they sat eating at the table. Chair legs scraped the floor and silverware banged down on the table while each of the others cried out happily at seeing Jenn walking into the room with Dumbledore.

Jenn let a smile spread across her face as she was pulled into five different hugs by her friends. Lori gave her a gentle squeeze while Lily hugged her tight and rocked her once from side to side. Remus hugged her awkwardly while James gave her a hug that was a cross between Lori and Lily's and Sirius hugged her last of all and held her tightly while he buried his nose in the hair at the nape of her neck and breathed in deeply. The touch sent shivers up her spine and softly she breathed out his name in wonder.

"Sirius."

Sirius leaned back and kissed her lightly on the cheek before offering her his hand. Together they moved towards the table and Sirius led her to the empty chair between his and James's. Dumbledore followed silently behind as they all returned to the table and sat down.

Conjuring a chair for himself to sit in Dumbledore joined the students and waited for them to quiet down before he addressed them; "I hope that you will all be comfortable here. I know that you would much rather be out and about the castle with the rest of the students but I am concerned that it would only lead to more trouble and another attack." Dumbledore began softly. "There is only one week remaining until the winter holidays are upon us and during that time you will be free to roam the castle halls and the grounds outside. Until then I would ask you to remain inside your quarters here. There are only 6 other people besides those of us in this room who know where you are; Professor McGonagall (of course), Madam Pomfrey, Alastor Moody, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Professor Flitwick, and Hagrid."

Dumbledore studied each of the students in turn as he spoke. Making certain they each of them understood the danger they were in and the measures taken to insure their safety. "Anyone else who passes by this classroom will find only a solid brick wall no matter how hard they look or what spell they try. We performed the Fidelius Charm on the room a week ago as a final security measure and I was made secret keeper for this room. None of you who know of it will be able to tell those who don't, so that none will leak the secret out to any of Voldemort's followers."

The students all exchanged glances except Jenn, who listened silently to the rustling of the others as they shifted on their chairs.

"When the students return at the end of the holidays you will resume your studies here in the study hall that was created. Professor McGonagall has arranged a method so that you might receive the same lessons as your classmates; she will explain them to you before the holidays are over. If there is anything you need, please do not hesitate to use the fireplace to contact myself or McGonagall. It has been connected to the network with limited access; you will not be able to Floo out of this room nor will anyone else be able to enter the room through the fireplace. Now, do you have any questions?"

All six shook their heads and Dumbledore rose slowly as the chair he had used vanished.

"Very well, I will see you soon. Each of us will visit you once a day at random intervals to insure that everything is alright. Rest easy, ladies and gentlemen."

The students murmured goodbyes as Dumbledore turned and left the room. Silently they watched each other as they thought about the things Dumbledore had told them and everything that Dumbledore had not told them. Slowly they turned back to their food and ate slowly. Jenn shared a piece of pie with Sirius as the meal wore on. Eventually everyone finished up and returned the dishes to the buffet table where they used a quick spell to clear them of food before putting them away.

Lily and Lori led Jenn to their dorm and walked her carefully around room so that she could start learning where everything was kept. Jenn was secretly happy that they had left her the first bed; she knew it was the most logical place for her to be and the easiest to get to.

Lily spoke quietly with Jenn regarding her dresser and they soon worked out a method of labeling the drawers so that their contents would be easier to distinguish. With her wand in hand Lily moved to the dresser and opened the bottom drawer. She charmed the wood to grow up into a small divider so that shorts were on one side and pants on the other. Next she closed the drawer and used her wand to carve labels on the front of drawer on either side of the partition telling what was on each side.

Jenn leaned down to run her fingers over the markings and told Lily that it would be perfect. Lily murmured in reply and quickly moved through each of the remaining drawers in the same manner. Lily asked if there was anything else that Jenn would like to have marked for quick identification and Jenn replied that she thought the beds and doors in the room might be helpful.

Lori joined them and together they went around the room placing markers at about chest height on various items around the room. When they finished up in their room, they moved on to the common room and started labeling things around the room. Sirius was just stepping out of the boys' room when Lily was marking their door and almost had the words MARAUDERS' ROOM carved into his chest. Lily gasped and apologized as James and Remus came out of the room laughing at the idea of Sirius labeled with his very own carving. Lily waited for them to close the door before finishing up the label. Sirius rubbed his chest protectively as he asked why they were doing that.

"So Jenn will know what everything is," Lily replied with a smile.

"Oh, I would never have thought of that," Sirius replied as he stepped away from Lily's wand.

Lily and Jenn laughed and moved on to the last door, after a quick glance inside; Lily marked the door as STUDY HALL.

"I think that is everything," Lily said as she guided Jenn over to the chairs and they both sat down.

Jenn sat awkwardly silent for several minutes before she nodded absently in Lily's direction. It still pained her to rely upon others to help her move around, but it no longer left her feeling helpless. She knew that in time she would be able to function without someone holding her hand every minute and this gave her strength.

In a matter of minutes the others joined them there before the fireplace and a nervous silence settled over all six of them. Each one of them lost in their won thoughts as they mulled over the events of the last few weeks. The afternoon light slowly slipped away as the silence continued to hang about the room.

One by one they each drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Moody watched as Peter slowly awakened from the sleeping potion he had been given earlier that day. Shacklebolt stood a short ways away speaking softly with Professor McGonagall. Peter looked fearfully around as he sat up, he immediately noticed those who stood over him and he cringed in fear.

"Good Evening, Mr. Pettigrew," Moody said as he kept both eyes on Peter as the boy sat up. "So good of you to finally join us."

McGonagall stopped talking and moved closer to eye Peter from a few steps behind Moody, while Kingsley remained where he was and silently watched the boy squirming.

"W-w-where am I?" Peter stuttered as he tried to frantically remember how he had gotten here.

"In the hospital ward," McGonagall answered in a clipped voice that was laced with disgust. At the sound of her voice Peter flinched and searched desperately for a way to escape.

"Oh," Peter replied as he continued to glance around nervously.

"We'd like to ask you a few questions boy," Moody growled out as he poured a glass of pumpkin juice and handed it over to Pettigrew. "And I want you to think carefully before you answer, anything less than the truth will be unacceptable."

Peter flinched at Moody's words and gulped half the juice in a single drink and spilled the rest all over the bed as the cup slipped from his hands.

"We'll start with a simple yes or no question," Moody continued. "Have you been passing information to Voldemort this term?"

Peter felt like he was once more caught in the trap up in the Gryffindor common room but this time there was no way he could chew his way out of it. He glanced from one face to the next and panicked at the anger and revulsion he saw reflected there. He firmly told himself he would simply deny being in touch with Voldemort and opened his mouth to tell them no but shocked himself when he answered something different. "Yes."

Trembling now, Peter couldn't understand what was happening. He had not meant to tell them the truth! Then he glanced down at the spilled juice that covered his sheets and looked up in time to catch a fleeting smile cross Moody's face as the Auror caught his eye. Peter had been given a truth serum mixed in with the pumpkin juice.

When Peter realized what had happened he bolted out of the bed and tried to escape by crawling under the bed. As Professor McGonagall moved to catch him, she noticed that he had not transformed completely back into his human form. Out of the back of his trousers hung the partial tail of a rat, which looked as if it had had half of its length chewed off.

Moody stunned Peter as the boy peeked his face out from under the bed furtively. Hauling him out the rest of the way Moody dumped him back on the bed in disgust.

"Bloody turncoat," Moody spat as he whipped his hands on his cloak to free them of the pumpkin juice.

McGonagall looked as if she could chew nails and Kingsley shuddered as he caught sight of the mutilated tail that Pettigrew still sported. Moody sent Kingsley to fetch Dumbledore while Moody secured the boy with ropes from his wand. McGonagall sat down stiffly in a nearby chair as she held her wand out and pointed at Peter.

* * *

All through the castle students were packing and gossiping about the events that had taken place a few short weeks ago. There was speculation about what really happened and not a few students wondered what had really become of those students who were missing. Down in the Slytherin Common Room, four students sat silently facing each other while all the others in their house rushed to pack their clothes for the upcoming holidays.

Zebulon Avery sat quietly with a dark look on his face. He was still upset about the way things turned out. He had not expected the Dark Lord to know that he had lied nor had he expected the Dark Lord to accept Snape more readily then he had accepted himself. Avery let his right hand drift down to rub his left arm as if wishing that he too carried the mark of the Dark Lord.

Severus watched Avery rubbing at him arm and frowned slightly. He knew that Avery would love nothing more than to carry the same mark that now marred Snape's own arm. Snape had been working the last few weeks on a way to get into the hospital ward where the Headmaster had announced several students were recovering. But the Aurors would let no student enter the ward unless they had a serious injury or illness. There had been no exceptions to that rule.

Crabbe and Goyle wouldn't even consider putting in their own two cents. They were nothing more then two thugs that did what they were told. Right now they kept passing glances between Avery and Snape as if trying to determine which one was to be feared more.

Finally Snape climbed to his feet and glared down at the others. "We have one week left before the holidays. You will use that time to search the castle. As a prefect Avery, you have a certain amount of freedom that can be used to search after hours during regularly scheduled patrols. Just keep away from the Aurors and make sure they don't see you. Crabbe and Goyle, you two can use the time left to search the library for any clues."

"What are we looking for?" Goyle asked sullenly.

"A book, stupid, with the name of Harry Potter in its title." Snape hissed.

"And what will you be doing?" Avery demanded as he too climbed to his feet.

"Reporting to the Dark Lord, unless you would like to go in my place?" Snape replied with an amused glint of perverse satisfaction in his eyes.

Zebulon turned white at the mention of Voldemort and sank back into his chair without comment as a mocking smile flitted across Snape's face.

"I didn't think so," Severus laughed softly. Still wearing his mocking grin he strode leisurely away from the others and headed up to his dorm room. There were several things he would need to take to the Dark Lord that he had secreted carefully in the lining of his old and tattered trunk.

During the weeks since he had first become one of the Dark Lord's chosen he had compiled a careful list of information that Voldemort would surly find useful. He had not found any trace of the coveted book but there was equally useful information that he had found out. Such as word of Dumbledore's decline in health during the past several weeks, it was true that the Headmaster appeared to have recovered but there were rumors flying about the castle that the old man's heart was failing. Voldemort would be pleased to know this.

For the first time in his life, Snape felt he had found himself among equals. Since he had been branded a Death Eater few had taken the time to humiliate him because of Avery's apparent friendship. It also helped that James Potter and his friends had, for all intents and purposes, vanished entirely. This worried at Snape in the back of his mind, those missing students were important somehow.

By the time Snape reached his dorm his mood had darkened considerable and several third year students scrambled out of his way in fear when they saw him scowl. Silently he passed them without a word and slammed the dormitory door behind him.


	23. A New Beginning

**DISCLAIMER:** A_LL HP characters are the property of JKR, the WB, and the respective publishing companies. I do own Jenn Parksen, Lori Wilson, and Monica Sinclair as well this twisted version of the plot. This is, of course, a simple Fan-Fiction that I have written in order to retain some semblance of sanity and dignity._

* * *

**Chapter 23: A New Beginning**

James was the first of the six to wake up. He looked around the room and for a few minutes couldn't figure out where he was. For a split second he thought they were back in the Room of Requirement but then everything came rushing back and he realized that they were in an old classroom up on the fifth floor. Climbing to his feet he took a moment to stretch out his back and shoulders before he walked slowly over to the walls and lit a few of the lights that hung there. As the soft glow spread out into the room, the others began to stir. Checking the time, James was surprised to discover that it was well after midnight and that they had slept through supper.

While the others stretched and worked out cramped muscles from having slept in the chairs, James went over to see if there was any food on the buffet, and was saddened to find that they were as empty as they had been after their lunch had been cleared away. At that moment James wished they were back in the Room of Requirement, for at least up there they had never gone hungry no matter what time of day it was.

"Any food Prongs old buddy?" Sirius queried as he wandered in the direction of the table. "I am so hungry I could eat an elephant!"

"Sorry, Pads, nothing here but nice shiny clean dishes. Don't reckon you want to try your teeth on any of those," James quipped with a sad smile.

Sirius pouted as he came to a stop beside James and stared with mournful longing at the empty plates. James gave him a quick sympathetic pat on the shoulder and then headed into their room so he could use the restroom and change his clothes. Lily and Jenn were walking side by side towards their room while Lori stood talking softly with Remus for a few moments before heading after them. Remus moved towards the buffet table and stood silently beside Sirius for a moment before he too went to change his clothes.

After ten minutes or so the other five began to appear one by one and all of them were a bit surprised to see Sirius still standing there with a look of dazed fascination as though he was trying to will food to appear on the empty platters that adorned the buffet table. The last one to come back out was James and when he caught sight of Sirius he walked over and gently took his arm and tried to pull him away from the food. When that failed to draw Sirius's attention away from the empty dishes James sighed and headed back to the chairs where everyone was sitting once more.

"We need to do something to get his mind off food," James murmured to the others as he approached them.

"I think we could all use a distraction," Remus replied as he glanced over to James.

"Why don't we go to the kitchens?" Sirius whined as he wandered over dejectedly and looked to James.

"Dumbledore told us not to leave," Lily replied sadly, as if she too wouldn't mind sneaking in some food.

"We have the cloak," Sirius retorted. "No one would ever know we'd snuck out.

"Moody can see through the cloak, Sirius," Jenn spoke in his general direction. "He will be wandering through the castle patrolling along with the other Aurors that are staying in the castle. Besides, Dumbledore is bound to have some magical means of knowing when the door is opened and whether it was opened from the inside or out. He would not what to chance anything further happening to us."

Sirius saddened at Jenn's logic, for he knew that she was right. Depressed now, Sirius slumped into the chair next to hers and hung his head in a puppyish fashion.

"Why don't we read?" Lori asked softly from where she sat.

Total silence met her suggestion. Lily looked as if she was about to fall over a huge cliff, while Remus and James looked thoughtful. Jenn's face closed up and Sirius looked as if he might cry but his mind was on food, not the book. As the silence dragged on Lori began to regret ever bringing up the book. She was just about to take back her suggestion when James spoke up.

"It would get our minds off of food," he softly whispered as he watched Lily's face.

Lori stood up and walked back into the girl's dorm and a few moments later returned carrying the book. Lily flinched visibly at the sight of the dark green cover. James walked over and held his hand out for the book, Lori handed it over without a word and everyone braced themselves for the shock of magic that they had been anticipating. When nothing happened James frowned down at the book and opened it up.

As he flipped through the pages he saw that every single one of them were blank. "Nothing." He whispered fearfully as he looked up to meet everyone else's eyes. "It's all blank."

Everyone exchanged nervous glances with each other except Jenn. She sat there thinking hard, after a minute or two she turned her sightless eyes in the direction she had last heard Lori's voice.

"Who touched the book first after the night of the battle in the forest?" Jenn asked softly.

"It was not where we left it in the Room of Requirement, so it would have to have been either Avery or those two thugs that always follow him," Lori replied slowly. "Why?"

"What if," Jenn began, "the book reflects how the future would be based on who held the knowledge of the book in their hands? What if, the book had fallen into the hands of Voldemort, and the reason that the book is blank is because in the hands of the Dark Lord Harry Potter doesn't exist. With the knowledge in the book, Voldemort could destroy you both before Harry could be conceived, let alone born."

A deathly silence settled onto those in the room as they contemplated the implications if Jenn was right. Lily went stark white as her eyes sought and found James for a brief moment before they fell onto the book that he held tightly in his hands.

"Maybe that's not the reason the book is blank though," Remus challenged suddenly. "What if it was wiped blank because when Avery touched it, it sought to protect the knowledge it held from those who would destroy the future."

"Then why wouldn't the words come back once we took the book back?" Sirius asked softly.

"Maybe it depends upon who holds the book," Jenn replied. "Maybe only one of us can affect the book with a touch." As she said this she turned and faced Lily's general direction. "It wasn't until you picked up the book that it changed the last time, Lily."

Lily shook her head frightfully as her eyes remained locked upon the green cover of the book. James stepped forward before he knelt beside Lily's chair. He didn't offer her the book; instead he took her hand in his and looked up into her eyes as they moved to meet his once more.

"Lily, no one will make you take the book this time. If you choose to have nothing to do with it, we will understand. But, if you should decide otherwise, we will be here. We will not leave you alone to face whatever the future holds."

"We could turn the book over to Dumbledore, if you would like," Lori added softly as she watched Lily's face.

Lily shook her head at this suggestion. In her heart, giving the book to Dumbledore would be admitting failure. Somehow, she knew that the knowledge was meant for her. She found the book, her touch triggered the last change in it, and she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that the moment she touched the book it would reveal the knowledge that lay buried inside it.

Slowly she slipped to the floor onto her knees and faced James as he sat holding the book on the floor in front of her. Hesitantly she reached out towards him as he lifted the book to her, their eyes dancing with fear as they gazed into each others eyes.

"Don't let go," Lily whispered so softly that James barely heard them. Nodding he pushed the book closer as her hands closed on one end of the cover.

For a split second, nothing happened as they both held one end of the book. Lily let her eyes slip down in that time before she looked up to meet James's eyes once more. The moment she looked back into his eyes though, the magic of the book came swirling out of the book in an angry torrent.

Once more a screeching wind whipped through the room tearing at the faces of those who sat watching. Lori was thrown to the ground and the chairs nearest were pushed clear across the room with the force of the wind. Jenn screamed in terror as her chair tipped over backwards and rolled several times, only to crash into the table. Sirius threw himself towards her, only to be ripped away and flung into the wall near the Study Hall. Remus alone remained strangely untouched as the wind savaged the rest of those in the room.

In the center of the storm, Lily and James still held the book between them as a blue light seeped from the book. Like a fog it slipped from the pages and swirled around them, blocking out the room and everything in it. An eerie silence engulfed them as the misty light surrounded them.

An icy numbness began climbing up their fingers as they continued holding the book. Up their arms the coldness rushed moving through their bodies like lightening before it penetrated their hearts. At the same time a second light began to drip out of the book onto the floor. Like before, this second light was blood red in color and it pulsed as though it lived. Outwardly it crept, not towards the walls this time, but towards those who had been scattered about the room.

Outside the misty blue light Remus watched in horror as the bloody light touched each of those scattered about the floor. He stepped forward, as though he would pull them free from the light, but was blocked by an unknown force that held him firmly in place. Screaming in frustration he beat his fists against the invisible wall while he helplessly watched the others disappear in a wash of red.

Back inside the blue light the silence was broken; first by the wailing cry of a child in distress and then by a high pitched laugh that was horribly cold and familiar to those inside the light. As the laughter died down a new sound replaced it. A woman's voice that slowly grew in strength as words began to echo and swirl about the pair.

"_Two hearts joined by the fates,  
A bond of love births hope for the future,  
Three sacrifice all they hold dear,  
One left to suffer alone in the darkness. _

_Shadows in the heart will destroy,  
Soundless are the cries of those lost,  
Forgiveness brings hope for tomorrow,  
Madness pushes the light away._

_Sides have been chosen,  
Lines drawn in the sand,  
Time runs shorter and years pass,  
The hope of the future is in your hands."_

As the last of the words died the light surrounding them faded into nothingness. James and Lily faced each other with tears burning in their eyes as the words of the prophecy echoed around them. It was several minutes before they noticed the sound of another in the room. James regretfully tore his eyes from Lily's to look upon the crumpled form of Remus sobbing loudly only a few feet away from them.

Lily closed her eyes when released from James' gaze and sagged visibly as she struggled to understand what had happened. She opened them slowly and peered out at those who lay unmoving against the far wall off the room.

"No," she whispered fearfully as none of them moved.

James whipped his heard around at the sound of Lily's voice and followed her eyes until he saw the crumpled forms of the others. Jerking to his feet he stumbled over to Sirius and carefully turned him over. Searching frantically he tried to find a pulse, praying that his friend was alright.

Lily began crawling towards Jenn and Lori. Her strength failing her as her fears overwhelmed her. As she collapsed to the floor the door to the room burst open with a thundering crash. Lily saw three shadows in the dim light of the hall for a brief instant before she blacked out from the ordeal.

James looked up tearfully from where he was frantically trying to wake Sirius; fear was etched in every line of his face.

* * *

***THE END***

* * *

**AN:** _Well, it's finally over… It's taken me far longer to get everything edited than I thought it would but I'm glad it is finally done. I wish I had felt confident that these past six or so chapters had been improved but I'm afraid all I did was fix some spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes instead of altering the story-line as much as I originally intended and part of that was because I kind of got burnt out on this story and part because I was so caught up in the other stories that I've been trying to write. I may come back at some point and make changes to this story once I feel I can give it the attention it needs but in the mean time I'll leave it where it is. _

_Part three will be posted once I have at least a third of the chapters cleaned up. I don't have a target date to give you right now though because I've got too many projects on the burner right now and would really rather not start something new until I get a few of them finished. If you are interested in seeing what I am working on, you can view my profile where I have my agenda for the month posted towards the bottom. _

_My thanks to everyone who stuck with me during the sporadic updates over the last handful of chapters. - Jenn_


End file.
